The Obsessive Neurotic Gardener

Posted on by Posted in Shrubs .
One of my absolute favorite shrubs is Ninebark Summer Wine and I think it likes me too because in only three years, it has grown like mad:
While it is documented to be in the range of 4′ to 6′ tall and 4′ to 6′ wide, mine is easily 7′ by 7′. It has quickly become a monster sized shrub and that’s OK; I have the room for it and it makes quite a statement as a result. Some other Ninebark Summer Wine tidbits:
  • Prefers full sun or partial shade – mine is situated in partial shade and the “wine” color is still phenomenal
  • Blooms here in zone 6 New Jersey from about mid May to early June
  • Works in almost all soil types including my compacted clay soil
  • Can be pruned immediately after blooming to ensure next year’s blooms aren’t cut off
  • The common name Ninebark refers to the exfoliated branches that peel in winter (more on that in a minute)
  • I’ve rarely ever had to water this shrub beyond when it was first planted
  • Works well as a specimen shrub but would look damn cool planted in mass as a hedge (but who has that kind of room?)
Some photos of my Ninebark Summer Wine through the seasons:

Leafing out in early to mid April:

The foliage soon gets that delicious wine color with the blooms not too far behind:
A sea of blooms at the end of May:
An up close and personal shot of a stunningly hot, individual bloom:

The foliage color stays dark all the way into Autumn and contrasts beautifully with yellow, chartreuse or bright green foliage (Spirea ‘Goldmound’ below):

Even in Winter, SW is a dazzling silhouette against the snow:

And if you get close enough, you can see the peeling bark (hence the name) of the Ninebark Summer Wine which gets better with age:

I’ve also planted Ninebark ‘Diablo’ but the jury is still out there. I am anticipating it to get a lot bigger than Ninebark Summer Wine. With both cultivars, I should add, you can prune them hard in the Spring to control size. You may lose the blooms, but truthfully, this shrub is all about the foliage isn’t it?

Until next time …

John

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16 Responses

  2. I have three Summer Wine’s and so far they look good. They recommend that they be pruned up to August 1 in zone 5 to shape and provoke them to fill out. They were pretty wilty in the beginning but once they had a hold on the soil they I have been drought free. I really do like the flowers even though they are small.

    I visited Ball Horticultural Gardens last week and they are testing some new Ninebarks.

    Eileen

  5. I confess —I don’t have a shrub anywhere–I guess I’m “afraid” of them. Stupid, I know. I guess I just don’t know where to place them. A row of these would be great to separate my yard into smaller area’s–if I could just get over my intimidation of doing that!
    Beautiful flowers on it-I bet it’s even better in real life!

  6. I used to have Summer Wine and loved it to pieces then it became so knocked back with powdery mildew I had to yanked it .. replaced it with a wonderful Japanese Maple to keep that darker colour there with Chocolate Snakeroot. I wemt through a few different Ninebark and now have Center Glow next to panicum varigatum ‘Shenandoah” .. they both pick up that burgundy colouring each of them has .. I also have other dark shrubs and perennials to dot the garden with dark and light .. but I had no idea Summer Wine would get that HUGE !! I kept mine at a height I could manage 😉 this is great though !
    Joy : )
    I have two “Morning Light” grass and they are fantastic !

    • what do you do about the white powdery mildew I tried cutting them back they are growing again but so is the white powdery mildew I don’t want to loose them any ideas?

  7. I love my Summer Wine Ninebarks, of which I have/had two. (I moved recently). One is in full sun and the other in partial sun (early morning) and they do grow very fast. The colour is phenomenal and looks best with a contrasting colour juxtaposed with it. I used Gold Nugget Barberry. Absolutely stunning.

    I’d love to try Diablo. It’s a matter of having the room for it as it definitely will grow larger than Summer Wine. A deeper shade of burgundy/brown, it too is a gorgeous specimen! I look forward to seeing your photos next year to see how your Diablo is coming along.

    Take care.

  8. Love the look of center glow ninebark, but I’ve planted them three years ago and have had problems with a white powdery mildew. Last year the bushes just grew new branches but the old dried up leftovers looked bad.This year the bushes look really dried up and I’m afraid they won’t come back next year.

  9. Very nice pictures and blog! Little Devil is a great ninebark with maroon foliage that stays small. The two I have only grew about 6″ last year in a part-shade area. This will be the second full year so will see if they take off more or maintain their controlled growth.

  11. I like the Ninebark Summer Wine too but mine dies back somewhat. There will be entire branches that are healthy one week and then the next week they just die. Of course Ninebark replenishes the dead branch with new growth quite rapidly. My Ninebark Summer Wine is in morning sun and afternoon shade. I just transplanted another one to full all day sun to see if that makes a difference. I have my Ninebark Summer Wine flanked by two Gold Mound Spireas. The color combination is very striking.

  12. I just bought a summer wine ninebark this year. It has been very difficult to get started. I’ve been watering it every other day at least. I really want this to grow big and beautiful!!! Help…….any suggestions.

    • Colleen – mine struggled first two years before exploding so it may just be establishing itself. The only thing I’ve seen over the years is that they need good drainage, especially over the winter. Hope it is working out ok?

  13. My new neighbor pruned mine this past Summer – I almost had a heart attack. I have had it 3 years in full sun and it was growing like crazy. Will the flowers come back next year? Thanks

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