Goat's Beard
Aruncus dioicus
Massive astilbe-like white flower plumes on shrub-sized clumps. Dioecious — males have showier, longer-lasting plumes. Young shoots and leaves have been cooked and eaten — with some caution, since the leaves contain cyanogenic compounds.
- Family
- Rosaceae
- Type
- wildflower
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 4–6 ft
- Spacing
- 2–4 ft apart
- Light
- sun, part shade, shade
- Soil moisture
- moist, wet
- Soil pH
- acidic
- Bloom
- May, June
- Bloom colors
- white
- Wildlife value
- butterflies, larval host
- Landscape uses
- border, naturalizing, rain garden
- Native states
- AK, AL, AR, CA, DC, GA, IA, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, TN, VA, WA, WV