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New Jersey Tea

Ceanothus americanus

New Jersey tea sends up frothy domes of tiny white flowers in midsummer over a low, tidy mound, and the bloom is one of the busiest insect events of the season — small bees, wasps, beetles and butterflies work it constantly. It fixes its own nitrogen through root nodules and drives a deep, woody taproot that makes it exceptionally drought-hardy and, past the first year or two, essentially impossible to move. That taproot is also why it survives prairie fire and why it belongs in a bed you do not intend to rework. It is the larval host for the mottled duskywing and the summer azure. The dried leaves brew a refreshing, caffeine-free tea that was used as a substitute for imported china tea during the Revolutionary War, which is where the name comes from. Give it sun and sharp drainage; it will not forgive heavy wet soil.

Family

Rhamnaceae

Type

shrub

Lifespan

perennial

Height

3–4 ft

Spacing

3–5 ft apart

Light

sun, part shade

Soil moisture

dry, moist

Soil pH

acidic, neutral

Bloom

March, April, May, June, July, August

Bloom colors

white

Wildlife value

songbirds, butterflies, larval host, pollinators

Caterpillar hosts

~45 butterfly & moth species

Landscape uses

foundation, naturalizing, rain garden

Native states

AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV