Spicebush

Lindera benzoin

Size: 3 Gallon Availability

Shrub
Max Size: 10′ tall x 10′ wide
Average Size: 8′ tall x 10′ wide

Very Moist, Usually Moist, Moist to Dry
Loam, Sand, Clay
Full Sun, Part Shade, Full Shade

AKA: Appalachian Allspice, Northern Spicebush

A long-lived perennial that prefers moist conditions; in part to full shade, it will tolerate short period of droughts once established. Prized for the red fall berries and bright, tiny yellow spring flowers that look like stars dotting the branches. In the garden, it does well as a specimen, a privacy hedge, or as a general understory shrub. The foliage gives off a spicy smell when crushed. When young, they grow about 1ft a year; when planted at 2-3ft tall, they typically grow 9-11ft tall in six years.

The flowers attract various pollinators including bees and flies. It’s also a larval host plant for the spicebush swallowtail and other butterflies. Small mammals will eat the fall fruit as will birds including: pheasant, quail, thrushes, robins, kingbirds, flycatchers, white-throated sparrows, and more.

The red berries are edible to humans, and are typically ready for harvest in fall; don’t harvest if they’re green or brown. They typically begin producing berries when they’re 3-6years old.  They are often used as a substitute for cinnamon and nutmeg in desserts; the flavor is sometimes said to taste like a mix of allspice and pepper. Additionally, cold or hot spicebush tea can be made from fresh or dried leaves and twigs; the flavor is mild and similar to chai; steep 1/2 cup for about 10-12 minutes in boiling water. There’s also a number of medicinal uses for the plant, mostly to do with treating general aches and pains. (1)

Additional sources: FNPS, Atlas of Florida Plants