Spiraea alba Du Roi
Meadowsweet, white meadowsweet
Meadowsweet is native to North America. The similar-appearing Spiraea latifolia has recently been reclassified as a form of this species. See also steeplebush, a pink relative.
Plants: Shrub is 2–6′ (60–182 cm) around, with multiple stems that are rarely branched. (Browsing by animals sometimes produces more densely branched bushes.) Stems are brown or yellowish brown.
Leaves: Alternate, green and textured above, paler in color beneath, narrowly ovate, and sharply toothed. They have pinnate veins and short stems, and are 1¾–2½ ⨉ ⅜–¾″ (5–7 ⨉ 1–2 cm).
Flowers: Large, densely flowered panicles are 2–6″ (5–15 cm) long, composed of individual flowers less than ¼″ (6.3 mm) around. Each flower is white or pale pink, with five petals and a large number of stamens. They flower from June to September.
Fruits: Dry brown follicles opening at the tip when ripened, and persisting long after flowering.
Habitats: Damp meadows, pastures, old fields, in sandy, loamy soil.
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Similar species. |
Online References:
8/1/2009 · Kennebunk Plains, Kennebunk, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
8/4/2006 · Mt. Mansfield, Stowe, Vermont 
7/10/2021 · Fox East Trail, Bradbury Mountain State Park, Pownal, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4½″ (15 × 11 cm) 
9/11/2021 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 15 cm) 
9/19/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 15 × 10″ (39 × 26 cm) 
7/9/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 12″ (20 × 31 cm) 
8/17/2020 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (16 × 11 cm) 
7/16/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 1 × 1½′ (32 × 42 cm) ID is uncertain 
8/16/2014 · White Mountains, New Hampshire · ≈ 6 × 8″ (14 × 20 cm) 
7/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 10 cm) 
9/19/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (9.2 × 12 cm) 
8/16/2014 · White Mountains, New Hampshire · ≈ 4½ × 6″ (11 × 16 cm) 
7/23/2025 · Curtis Farm Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm) 
7/22/2012 · Wapack Trail, Pack Monadnock, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
7/22/2012 · Wapack Trail, Pack Monadnock, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (11 × 16 cm) 
8/11/2020 · Cliff Trail, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 5 × 8″ (13 × 20 cm) 
9/17/2021 · Woodward Point Preserve, Brunswick, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm) 
That's a blackjacket wasp (Vespula consobrina) · 9/7/2025 · Andover, Maine · By Heather A. Kent 
8/1/2009 · Kennebunk Plains, Kennebunk, Maine · ≈ 4 × 3″ (10 × 8.5 cm) ID is uncertain 
8/1/2021 · Houghton Graves Park, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 3 × 5″ (8.4 × 12 cm) 
7/9/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 9″ (18 × 23 cm) 
8/4/2006 · Mt. Mansfield, Stowe, Vermont 
7/10/2021 · Fox East Trail, Bradbury Mountain State Park, Pownal, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (11 × 7.5 cm) 
8/16/2014 · White Mountains, New Hampshire · ≈ 5 × 7″ (13 × 18 cm) 
9/11/2021 · Otter Brrok Preserve, Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 6″ (10 × 15 cm) 
7/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (11 × 7.9 cm) 
7/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) 
7/9/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 7″ (13 × 18 cm) 
8/1/2021 · Houghton Graves Park, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (9 × 12 cm) 
7/9/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Rosidae | Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more |
| Order | Rosales | Rose family and eight others |
| Family | Rosaceae | Includes apples, apricots, plums, cherries, peaches, pears, raspberries, strawberries, almonds, roses, meadowsweets, photinias, firethorns, rowans, and hawthorns; many others |
| Genus | Spiraea | From Greek speiraira, “a plant used for wreaths or garlands,” in turn from speira, “spiral or twisted” |
| Species | alba | “White” |
Spiraea alba description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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