I just posted a photo of the White Woodland Japanese Spirea, Spiraea japonica albiflora, into the various photos because I could not find this species or variety in the list. I've never seen the mother species of the Japanese Spirea (Spiraea japonica japonica). There are lots of different cultivars of this species and the hybrid Bumald Spirea planted over much of the USA in landscapes abundantly. It is a pretty and very easy small shrub to use and it does not sucker like the few American species do; the latter wild in some places in North America but not used hardly at all in landscapes. Very easy to prune from after blooming to the next early spring, as it blooms on current years growth. Also, one can cut it close to the ground or leave a few stems about 6 inches high. The mother Japanese species looks a lot like the very common 'Anthony Waterer' cultivar with pink flowers. The White Woodland variety looks a lot like Anthony Water also, but has white flower clusters instead. Actually, 'Anthony Waterer' is a cultivar of the Bumald Spirea (Spiraea x bumalda) that is a hybrid of the Japanese X Woodland Spireas. (If the White woodland type is just S. japonica, then maybe there should not be a S. x bumalda at all; but the nurseries will still list them with the hybrid name.) My big concern over the Japanese and Bumald Spirea is that it is escaping cultivation and becoming an invasive east Asian plant in the wild.

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