Looking for a shrub 5-8 ft tall, wet soil tolerant in spring

13 years ago

Im looking for a shrub which can tolerate wet conditions in the spring. Sometimes even standing water in the wet season of April-May, but pretty dry during the summer months. The soil is pretty much 6 inches of top soil followed by clay. Im situated in zone 5, SE Michigan, Temps in the winter can reach down to -10 to -20F in the most extreme.

Some background... My mother gave me 5 lilac plants which were about 4 ft tall. I planted them all in a row on a fence which slopes away from my house into the lowest corner of the property. Three of the lilacs which were planted towards the top of the hill by my house are thriving and have grown to 6-7 ft tall, but 2 of them planted in the wet low area are not doing so good. They are still alive but now after 3 yrs its apparent they are not going to thrive there in the wet conditions.

So I wanted to replace them with a shrub which can tolerate the wet conditions in the spring, but dry in the summer. And about the same height as the lilacs, 5-8+ ft tall.

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Comments (10)

Embothrium
13 years ago
Maybe you can get redtwig dogwood to work. Flooded during the winter but baked during the summer is pretty limiting, as most wet tolerant shrubs will want to have plenty of moisture during the growing season as well.
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landperson
13 years ago
Check out buddleia lindleyana.

Susan
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whaas_5a
13 years ago
Red chokeberry or dogwood are likely your best options. Bboy's point is on the money as far as options are concerned.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
13 years ago
i am in SE MI .... south of ann arbor..

many of you suburban detroit peeps think you are in SE MI ... where are you more specifically ...

now.. do you know how to plant when dealing with clay ... if involves planting about half the root mass in the soil.. perhaps your 6 inches.. and then making a mound around the rest of it.. effectively raising your plant out of the clay ... which might also raise the crown of the plant out of the spring water ....

you fail to mention how deep the water is in spring..

how you plant.. might increase the number of options you have ... and really help anything you do plant there ...

ken
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Embothrium
13 years ago
Choose a plant adapted to the existing soil and plant in the usual way. Many kinds of trees and shrub grow on clay soils, otherwise there would be no woody vegetation on clay soils.
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User
13 years ago
Plant Rose of Sharon.
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tepelus
13 years ago
My viburnum tomentosum seem to fare pretty well with the wet springs and dry summers, and my soil is clayish. They do get afternoon shade and morning sun, then some sun again late in the evening. One of the viburnums however has smaller leaves this year due to all the moisture, it's roots being underwater for nearly two months with some short term drying out within that time. The flowers weren't as big either. The second one is in a slight bit higher ground and fared better. Both did put on a little more growth this year, but not as much as previous years. Both are developing berries. My yard is prone to flooding, it sits lower than the surrounding neighbors and is a catch all for their runoff. Also, my burning bushes, which are planted with the viburnums, are doing good too, as is my clethra Ruby Spice. That one was in more water than the others, and was chewed up by rabbits, but has filled back out and is about to flower, of which smell really good, and has good yellow fall color.

Karen
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Embothrium
13 years ago
That species in cultivation here is quite prone to infertility and summer drought.
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botann
13 years ago
Standing water in any landscape, other than a pond or bog, needs to be corrected. Get control of the drainage by contouring the soil so that it drains, then plant. If you can't do it, get somebody who can. At least get some on-site advice from someone who's qualified.
Mike
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woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
13 years ago
I have a spot with similar conditions - I call it 'the wet corner bed'. It's not possible to change the drainage there because it's a low spot where three neighbouring properties slope/drain towards as well as our own. And there's nowhere to drain the water to anyway because it is in the far back corner. I don't try to grow anything woody in the wettest area - but Ostrich Ferns live there happily. Moving back slightly, there's a large Goatsbead. Kirengshoma happily covers the next band of not-quite-as-wet soil. On the outer edge where it's still moist but not heavily waterlogged in spring, quite a few things are happy there including hydrangeas, hostas, white filipendula (Filipendula ulmaria), and Jack-in-the-pulpit. (My wet corner is shady as you can tell from the plantings!) I would suggest that the OP focus on perennials as the best option for the wettest area and leave the shrubs for the dryer margins.
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Looking for a shrub 5-8 ft tall, wet soil tolerant in spring

Comments (10)

Embothrium

landperson

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whaas_5a

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

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woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada

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