Snow on my mind

For the second time in just a few weeks, I was writing and anticipating a winter snowstorm. The first time around, most of us got just a light glazing of sleet or freezing rain, but this time, we might actually got some real snow, and more than an inch or two. Since snow is on my mind, this week’s column is about a tree known as the American Snowbell, Styrax americanus.

I previously mentioned this tree briefly in an article about a related plant, Carolina silverbell, Halesia carolina, but I believe the snowbell is worthy of its own feature.

Styrax americanus is a small tree or large shrub native to the Southeastern United States, from Ohio to Florida and west to Texas. Like snow, the snowbell is not terribly common in North Carolina landscapes. In fact, the Japanese snowbell, Styrax japonicus, a slightly larger tree, is a bit more frequently used, but even that is not exactly a mainstay of our landscapes.

Should we use American snowbell more? Maybe. It’s certainly quite attractive in bloom. The white bell-shaped flowers hang downward from the foliage-covered branches like snow drops falling from the sky. Bloom time is usually late spring, well after the new leaves have emerged, and thus the blooms compete somewhat with the foliage for attention, but more often than not win out. The flowers are sweetly fragrant, and attract a variety of birds and pollinators, including the Promethea silkmoth. Later in the fall, pollinated flowers turn in to small (1/3” long) grayish-brown fruits. Leaves will turn yellowish in autumn before falling, though the color change is not usually dynamic enough to be impactful.

Top left: The American Snowbell would be a good fit in native plant collections, pollinator gardens, and rain gardens. Photo: J. Steakley, CC BY-SA 3.0 Top right: Close-up of a flower. They are bell-shaped and sweetly fragrant. Photo: T. Pottersfield, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 Lower photo:  A stem heavy with blooms in late spring. The flowers hang downward from the foliage-covered branches, like snowdrops falling from the sky. Photo: BlueRiverKitties, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

In thinking about what plants need to offer in modern landscapes in order to fit in, we typically look for plants that either have a prolonged period of ornamental interest, or offer ornamental value in multiple ways throughout multiple seasons.  American snowbell doesn’t really do that. It’s really only ornamentally interesting when it’s in bloom, and we don’t think or worry much about it when it’s not. When our eye isn’t drawn to it, it almost disappears from our mind. You still occasionally see plants like deutzia and mockorange that perform essentially the same way in landscapes, down to the white flowers. As long as we use those plants, then there’s still room for snowbell here and there. Maybe then, like snow, it’s fitting for this plant to only appear once in a great while so that it can be appropriately appreciated without wearing out its welcome. 

You will find American snowbell growing naturally in wet areas such as river banks, marshes, and swamps.  Therefore, if you do wish to add one to your landscape, you’ll need to do so in a rich, acidic, sandy soil with average to high moisture but good drainage. It would certainly be a good fit in native plant collections or pollinator gardens, and naturalized areas, provided the soil conditions are right, and it would be an ideal fit for use in rain gardens.

Matthew Stevens is the County Extension Director and Horticulture Agent for North Carolina Cooperative Extension’s Pitt County Center.  If you have questions about this article or gardening in general, please contact the Pitt County Extension Master Gardeners at [email protected] or 252-902-1705.