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Mountain Sweet-pepperbush

Clethra acuminata

Found in moist forests, heath balds, streambanks, margins of rock outcrops at high elevations. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

57
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
8–20 feet
Spread
4–6 feet
Light
Dappled sunlight, Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 4 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
Summer
Fruiting season
September to October

Recorded in 17 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 4

Moist forests

Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland
Regional / representative. Shown: Mountains of North and South Carolina; exact site not identified, a neighboring state.Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Mountain balds

Andrews Bald, Forney Ridge Trail, July 2020
Grassy mountain bald with shrub islands. Shown: Andrews Bald, Forney Ridge Trail, Swain County, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Andrews Bald, Forney Ridge Trail, July 2020, Andrea Walton / Great Smoky Mountains National Park, July 2020. Public domain. Source record.

Streams, rivers and their banks

Watauga Falls
Named place / source context. Shown: Watauga Falls, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Watauga Falls, Illustrator/engraver not confidently attributed; reproduced in Zeigler and Grosscup, The Heart of the Alleghanies (1883), 1883. Public domain. Source record.

Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits

Sassafras Mountain rock outcrop
Rock outcrop on a mountain summit. Shown: Sassafras Mountain, on the North Carolina and South Carolina line, a neighboring state.Sassafras Mountain rock outcrop, Alan M. Cressler / U.S. Geological Survey, undated. Public domain. Source record. Faithful JPEG display decode of embedded JP2; no AI or color enhancement. Phone derivative resized proportionally.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 132 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

9CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Clethra

  • Coelodasys unicornisUnicorn Caterpillar Moth
  • Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Herpetogramma thestealisZigzag Herpetogramma, Subtle-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Lycia ypsilonWoolly Gray
  • Nola clethraeSweet Pepperbush Nola
  • Olethreutes inornatanaInornate Olethreutes
  • Prochoerodes lineolaLarge Maple Spanworm Moth
  • Pyrrharctia isabellaIsabella Tiger Moth, Banded Woolybear
  • Scopula limboundataLarge Lace-Border
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
11BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Clethra

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Clethraceae
Hardiness
Zones 6a–7b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
White
Fruit begins
September
Fruit ends
October

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Mountain Pepper Bush; Mountain Sweet pepperbush

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4
Global rankG4
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Sources