New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus)

$15.00

New Jersey Tea is such a great nectar and pollen plant. The flowers attract a variety of native bees and hummingbirds (illinoiswildflower.info). A deciduous shrub that grows just 3' tall and is compact and rounded by nature. Its deep roots make this shrub drought-tolerant, but difficult to move once established so choose your spot wisely. It is a host plant for the Spring Azure Butterfly and 44 other species of butterflies and moths in our area (nwf.org), including the threatened Mottled Duskywing (mnfi.anr.msu.edu/). On top of that, it is the host plant to the specialist bees Pseudopanurgus pauper and Pseudopanurgus virginicus (Johnson and Colla, 2023). New Jersey Tea is recommended as a preferred pollinator plant by the Xerces Society (Xerces.org). An all-around great landscape plant.

Photo credit: Andrey Zharkikh (1)

New Jersey Tea is such a great nectar and pollen plant. The flowers attract a variety of native bees and hummingbirds (illinoiswildflower.info). A deciduous shrub that grows just 3' tall and is compact and rounded by nature. Its deep roots make this shrub drought-tolerant, but difficult to move once established so choose your spot wisely. It is a host plant for the Spring Azure Butterfly and 44 other species of butterflies and moths in our area (nwf.org), including the threatened Mottled Duskywing (mnfi.anr.msu.edu/). On top of that, it is the host plant to the specialist bees Pseudopanurgus pauper and Pseudopanurgus virginicus (Johnson and Colla, 2023). New Jersey Tea is recommended as a preferred pollinator plant by the Xerces Society (Xerces.org). An all-around great landscape plant.

Photo credit: Andrey Zharkikh (1)

Life Cycle: Perennial

Sun Exposure: Full, partial sun

Soil Moisture: Medium-dry, dry

Height: 3 feet

Plant Spacing: 18-36 inches

Bloom Time: June - August

Bloom Color: White

Advantages: Caterpillar Favorite, Pollinator Favorite, Bird Favorite, Great landscaping plant

Host Plant: Spring Azure and 44 other species of butterflies and moths use this as a caterpillar host plant in our area (nwf.org)

Specialist Bee: Pseudopanurgus pauper and Pseudopanurgus virginicus (Johnson and Colla, 2023)

Beneficial for Endangered or Threatened Species: Mottled duskywing (Erynnis martialis) (mnfi.anr.msu.edu/)

Resource: Johnson, Lorraine, and Sheila Colla. A Northern Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators: Creating Habitat in the Northeast, Great Lakes, and Upper Midwest. Island Press, 2023

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