Spiraea tomentosa L.

• Authority

  Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

• Family

  Rosaceae

• Scientific Name

  Spiraea tomentosa L.

• Description

  Species Description - Simple or sparsely branched shrub to 12 dm; lvs ovate to oblong or lanceolate, 3–5 cm, beneath white or rufous with a dense tomentum and prominently veined; infl terminal, branched, elongate, 5–15 cm; hypanthium tomentose; sep reflexed after anthesis; fls pink or rarely white, 3–4 mm wide; fr pubescent; 2n=24. Swamps and wet meadows; N.S. and N.B. to Que. and Minn., s. to N.C., Tenn., and Ark. July–Sept. Var. tomentosa, chiefly eastern, has 11–20 fls per cm of axis; the ill-defined, mostly western var. rosea (Raf.) Fernald has 6–10 fls per cm of axis.

• Common Names

  hardhack