Illustration
Virginia Sweetspire
Itea virginica
Also called virginia willow, virginian willow, tassel-white, sweet spire and virginia sweet spire
Virginia Sweetspire blooms from June through July.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Virginia Sweetspire
Plant it in part sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 5–9. Expect it to reach about 4.5 ft tall and 4.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 4 years (a house reading).
No toxicity note is on file for Virginia Sweetspire. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant, with what the sources could not settle written down; years to mature size rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one, and is marked so; its common name and alternate names have not been checked yet. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Virginia Sweetspire
Plant Virginia Sweetspire in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 7, the middle of its hardy zones 5 to 9, spring means March to May and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms from June to July.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 7, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 7 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Virginia Sweetspire get?
4.5 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult4.5 ftwideSee Virginia Sweetspire in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Virginia Sweetspire
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Virginia Sweetspire about 4.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Virginia Sweetspire to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Virginia Sweetspire's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases, pests and toxicity were checked against 8 published sources on September 26, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- NC State ExtensionPlant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases, pests and toxicity
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags, soil, diseases and pests
- illinoiswildflowers.infoIllinois Wildflowers (John Hilty)height, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, soil, diseases and pests
- The Morton Arboretumheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, soil and diseases
- plantdatabase.uconn.eduUniversity of Connecticut Plant Database (Mark H. Brand)height, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, soil and pests
- Chicago Botanic GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower CenterUniversity of Texas at Austinheight, sun, water, bloom months and color, trait tags and soil
- Plant Addictsits Sweetspire category pagesun
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
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Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.