Physocarpus 'Summer Wine'

Over the past 25 years our native Eastern ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius) has been reborn. Its overly vigorous nature has been tamed. Latest up is Summer Wine™ ninebark with small, deeply cut, wine burgundy leaves, quite different from the medium green foliage of old-fashioned ninebarks. Summer Wine is a more compact (5-6 feet in height and width) grower.

Grow ninebark in full sun to retain its reddish leaf color longer. Ninebark grows in any soil type, tolerates wet soggy ground, and is pH insensitive. It demonstrates exceptional heat and drought tolerance after one year in the garden. Annual pruning, right after spring flowers have faded,  further limits  growth and presents many design choices. 

Summer Wine fits a multiple of landscape uses: grouped enmasse as a dense growing deciduous hedge, screen or border, or grown by itself as a landscape specimen or in a patio container. Ninebark grown in outdoor containers is winter hardy here in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zones 6 and 7).

White spirea-like flower clusters, 1 ½ – 2 inch wide, open in May. White blossoms and dark foliage playoff each other. The reddish leaf tint has bled out by mid-summer, now dark green and usually blemish-free. Autumn leaf color is of no consequence.