Ornamental flowering spring shrub, best known for its sweet light, fruity fragrance that can fill a yard. (Calycanthus floridus) Sweet Shrub is native to the Appalachian stream banks of the Smokies, where it is also known as Carolina Allspice, Strawberry Bush, Sweet Shade, and Bubby Blossom. Women used to place the flowers in their bodices as a perfume, hence the name "Bubby Blossom". Sweet shrub was once commonly found as an ornamental around colonial homes, especially south of the Mason-Dixon line. Several large bushes can fill a small yard with the combined fragrance of strawberry, cantaloupe, spiced apple, and burgundy wine. Sweet shrub has a distinctive maroon-red flower about 2" across. It is pollinated by small beetles that were the first pollinators of flowering plants and were instrumental in the evolution of flowering plants, long before bees and flies appeared on the scene. When the flower first opens it has the fragrance of spiced apples as it opens over a period of 7 to 10 days. Flowers first appear in mid-March with a flush of flowers in April, and a trailing out through May. Even the leaves are fragrant when rubbed, and in the fall they turn a sunny yellow. In colonial times the cinnamon-flavored bark was used as a seasoning. Sweet shrubs are ideal for planting close to the house near a window where the fragrance may drift indoors. Plant additional plants by a favor-ite path or sitting area. Will flower splendidly in full sun, but is best adapted to light shade. Flowers in 2 to 3 years from seed. Medicinal: Useful for damp spleen. An excellent herb for moving stagnant chi. The leaves, twigs, and buds have diaphoretic properties. An emmenagogue, and possibly has some anti-viral activity plant in fall about 2 inches in ground anyway with the history lesson over these thngs are all over the place here n ga i have hundreds of seeds and tons of the plants gotta love greenhouses they can ge grown form cuttings if you guys are haveing a hard tme finding any just shoot me a email amosmc81@yahoo.com with a self addressed stamped envalope id be more than happy to send anyone a few seeds to get them started or to trade or whtever :)

Calycanthus will grow acceptably in Northern California (it actually does better up there than down in So. Cal.). It likes water and the fragrance varies from plant to plant (you have to smell them when they're in bloom as you're shopping). Our native Calycanthus (C. occidentalis) has a good fragrance in the flower as well as in the crushed leaves and it's very drought-tolerant. Joe

They may be one of those plants that needs to sit still in a pot for a long time before being replanted. When I've dug up suckers from my plant I don't think I lost a one, but I didn't get around to planting them in the ground for over a year. They are also easy from seed and most folks that have a bush have a supply of seed each winter.

My vote would be for Wintersweet. There are quite a few reasons for this. 1 - I've lost Calycanthus at least 3 times due to lack of water, even though I watered them as often as I thought about it. None of my 4 wintersweets have EVER been watered and they've never missed a beat. 2- Wintersweet grows into a plant that could be easily pruned into a tree. Calycanthus would be hard to develop a leader to shape into a trunk. It's more branchy from the bottom. 3 - Wintersweet is a much stronger fragrance. On certain days it carries in the air. Calycanthus does not, and as often as not the fragrance is comparable to rotten strawberries. As many of my visitors hate the smell as like it. 4 - Wintersweet blooms in the winter when your soul is hungry for something to enjoy. Calycanthus blooms in early summer right along with every other thing on the planet! I like Calycanthus , and collect as many varieties as I can... and baby them along. But wintersweet is far more valuable to me.