Description
Shrubby St. John’s-wort is a small, mound-shaped, deciduous shrub, often to 3 ft. tall, with dense, upright branching and exfoliating, red to purple bark. Smooth, dark- to blue-green, fine-textured foliage becomes yellow-green in fall. Large, yellow flowers occur singly or in few-flowered clusters. A dry, dehiscent, three-valved capsule persists all winter.
This shrub adapts to a variety of moisture regimes and is even flood tolerant. It has no serious disease or insect problems. This species is pH adaptable but does extremely well in calcareous sites.
Shrubby St. John’s Wort will grow in a range of soils from sandy to clay and, while it prefers to stay moist, it will tolerate dry soils. The plant will grow in full sun or partial shade, but full sun will maximize blooms. It is a slow grower and will tolerate drought. It can spread, the root pattern is rhizomatous with underground stems sending roots and shoots along their length, but can be kept under control with spring pruning.
