Growing guide · Shrubs

Physocarpus opulifolius 'Monlo'

How to grow Ninebark 'Diabolo'.

Deep purple leaves. Takes a beating.

Light
Full sun, part sun
Water
Moderate
Zones
3–7
Size
5–10 ft tall, 6–10 ft wide
Spacing
6–8 ft apart, or 4–5 ft for a hedge.
Pets
Not on the ASPCA pet-safe list; keep it out of reach
See sizes · from $75.99
Large ninebark shrub with deep purple maple-shaped leaves and white button flower clusters

Light

Full sun for the darkest color; in shade it turns green.

Water

Water weekly the first season. Established plants handle drought.

Planting and soil

Plant in spring or fall in about any soil, root ball top at soil level.

Feeding

None needed.

Pruning

Prune after flowering. Every few years, cut a third of the oldest stems to the ground to keep it fresh.

Through the year

Purple leaves in spring, flowers in late May to June, red seed pods in summer, peeling bark in winter.

If something's off

Powdery mildew in humid, still air; thin it out. It gets big, so give it room.

Plays well with

Plant it with friends.

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Why we stock it: A native shrub with big presence that's hard to kill.

Grows wild in 22 states (USDA PLANTS records). About 25 native butterfly and moth species use Physocarpus as a host (Narango et al. 2020).

That's everything we know about growing it. Thanks for reading.

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