I ordered and planted 'Adonis Blue' in my garden last year. It only grew about 2' tall, and it was very thin, too. It never really had a chance, though, because my huge 'Sonset' lantana grows next to it, and it grew right over it pretty early in the season. I just recently transplanted the butterfly bush to a bed where it'll have plenty of room, so hopefully it'll be able to grow to its fullest this year. I think it really is a dwarf, though, because my other butterfly bushes grow to 9' or more each year even when they're close to other vigorous plants. I hope 'Adonis Blue' grows to a reasonable size this year, because I just LOVED the color of the blooms - they were a stunning shade of royal blue! Sherry

The Caryopteris and butterfly bush can be pruned hard pretty soon. I would wait for another few weeks. Do you have a mounding, summer-blooming Spiraea x bumalda or japonica? If so, then treat it similarly (spring-blooming spirea are pruned post-bloom). I don't prune my clethra annually as there is no need to do this. If they grow too large, remove entire stems to the base or rejuvenate the entire plant. But this would only need to be done every 5-7 years.

Pull it up and look at the rootball, it may be dry inside.

The way I tell the difference is bumble = hairy butt and carpenter = smooth/shiny butt (technically called "hairless"). I had always thought it was "butt" & not "abdomen", but thanks to Google, I found how wrong I was terminology wise, LOL. I always thought the abdomen was the center of the bee, not the bottom part. From the attached link: General Bumble Bee Information The "Bumble Bee" is a big, hairy, black and yellow bee whose size can range from 3/4 inch to 1 1/2 inch. This insect is often mistaken for a carpenter bee, which closely resembles the bumble bee in appearance. Carpenter bees have a shiny and smooth abdomen as opposed to the fuzzy abdomen seen on a bumble bee. The pic posted by terrene is a carpenter bee. Here is a link that might be useful: Bumble Bee Biology