White snowberry or racemose snowberry

Family Caprifoliaceae. North America: from Canada south to Pennsylvania, west to California.

Usually on open slopes in light mountain woods and along riverbanks, mainly on dry rocky soils.

Deciduous shrub up to 1.5 m tall, with a rounded crown and long thin shoots. Leaves simple, ovate or almost round, entire, sometimes shallowly lobed, up to b cm long, green above and glaucous beneath. Small pink flowers are gathered in dense racemose inflorescences distributed along the shoots, making the bush, despite the small flowers, very decorative. It blooms abundantly and for a long time, and on the shoots one can see not only open flowers but also ripe fruits — berry-like, spherical, up to 1 cm in diameter, white, very ornamental, juicy, they persist on the shoots for a long time, decorating the plants even after the leaves have fallen.

Grows quickly, undemanding to cultivation conditions, light-loving, prefers calcareous soils. Tolerates pruning, shaping and urban conditions well. In the eastern and southeastern parts of the forest zone it sometimes suffers from frost, but recovers quickly. Propagates well and quickly by layering, stem cuttings, division of the bush and by seeds, which are stratified for 30–40 days before sowing.

Used for solitary and group plantings, in hedges and borders. In cultivation since 1879.