woodland shrub

Common Snowberry

Symphoricarpos albus

Native to much of the USA and southern Canada

Quebec to Alaska, scattered southward to Massachusetts, West Virginia, Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, Colorado and California

Light Full sun to shade Sun tolerance
Moisture Dry to moist Moisture preference
Zones 2–10 Cold to heat range
Bloom May–Sep Flowering time
Height up to 5 ft to 1.5 m
Life cycle Perennial Annual to perennial

Full details, see below

In the garden

A woodland shrub for sun through shade and dry to moist soil. Its white and pink flowers peak in June. At up to 5 ft, it needs room in shade gardens and woodland edges. Hardy in USDA zones 2–10.

Growing conditions

Light

Full sun Partial shade Full shade

Moisture

Dry Moist Wet

Hardiness zones

Find your zone:

When it blooms

The Common Snowberry's white and pink flowers bloom May to September, peaking in June. This early-summer display draws bees and butterflies.

Common Snowberry blooms white & pinkFoliage

Pollinators & wildlife

Bees Common Eastern Bumble Bee

also Western Honey Bee, Brown-belted Bumble Bee, Two-spotted Bumble Bee +84 more
Yellow-faced Bumble Bee, Tricolored Bumble Bee, Black-tailed Bumble Bee, Bombus fervidus, Red-belted Bumble Bee, Hunt's Bumble Bee, Fuzzy-Horned Bumble Bee, Two-form Bumble Bee, Half-black Bumble Bee, Orange-legged Furrow Bee, Yellow-fronted Bumble Bee, California Bumble Bee, Nevada Bumble Bee, Great Basin Bumble Bee, Modest Masked Bee, Nearctic Bumble Bee, Western Leafcutter Bee, Yellowish Cuckoo Bumble bee, Sitka Bumble Bee, Indiscriminate Cuckoo Bumble Bee, Prunus Miner Bee, Neighborly Mining Bee, Pugnacious Leafcutter Bee, White-shouldered Bumble Bee, Western Bumble Bee, Van Dyke's Bumble Bee, Lucorum-group Bumble Bees, Cryptic Bumble Bee, Black-and-gray Leafcutter Bee, Ceratina acantha, frigid bumble bee, Colorado Mason, Golden-belted Bumble Bee, Black-and-green Metallic-Sweat bee, Snowy Mining Bee, Meadow Parsnip Miner Bee, Lonely Mining Bee, Lasioglossum nitidiusculum, Lupine Miner Bee, Kincaid's Cellophane Bee, Olympia Sweat Bee, Occidental Sweat Bee, Silver-fronted Small-Mason, Glittering Cellophane Bee, Buff-tailed Bumble Bee, W-labrum Miner, Elderberry Small-Mason, Willow Flower Miner Bee, Common Furrow Bee, Red-tailed Bumble Bee, Subtle Miner Bee, Buckell's Miner Bee, Shaggy Furrow Bee, Victoria Miner Bee, Osmia pusilla, Lasioglossum pleurospeculum, Lasioglossum euboeense, Lasioglossum laeve, Early Bumble Bee, Common Carder Bumble Bee, Lasioglossum subfasciatum, Northern White-tailed Bumble Bee, Great Banded Furrow Bee, Bicoloured Miner, Garden Bumble Bee, Tree Bumble Bee, Forest Cuckoo Bumble bee, Trevor's Miner Bee, Peaceful Sweat Bee, Shifty Miner Bee, Golden-haired Miner Bee, Knuth's Miner Bee, Singular Miner Bee, Partly-haired Miner Bee, Colletes hederae, Ashy Furrow Bee, Vestal Cuckoo Bumble bee, Fringed Furrow Bee, Lasioglossum zonulum, Lasioglossum sp.F2, Edwards's Long-horned Bee, Fog-belt Bumble Bee, All-blue Shortface, Bombus vancouverensis vancouverensis
Butterflies Red Admiral

also Painted Lady, Mourning Cloak, Western Tiger Swallowtail +27 more
Common Wood-Nymph, Dun Skipper, Lorquin's Admiral, Hobomok Skipper, Echo Azure, Tawny-edged Skipper, Coral Hairstreak, Tailed Copper, Garita Skipperling, Nelson's Hairstreak, Afranius Duskywing, Edwards's Skipperling, Speckled Wood, Holly Blue, Occidryas anicia capella, Speyeria atlantis hesperis, Mastor oslari, Pahaska Skipper, Harkenclenus titus, Polites origenes, Thorybes mexicana, Poanes taxiles, Cynthia cardui, Thorybes pylades, Pacuvius Duskywing, Speyeria callippe, Western Arctic Skipper
Flower flies Common Drone Fly

also Transverse-banded Flower Fly, Variable Duskyface Fly, Yellow-haired Sun Fly +10 more
Volucella bombylans, Platycheirus albimanus Group, Marmalade Hover Fly, Hornet Mimic Hover Fly, Ladder-backed Hover Fly, Sun Fly, Merodon Merodon equestris, Emarginate Smoothtail, Orange-spotted Drone Fly, Pellucid Hover Fly
Also visited by
- Wasps:
  
  Bald-faced Hornet, Common Aerial Yellowjacket +6 more
  Golden Paper Wasp, Bramble Mason Wasp, Blackjacket, Yellow-legged Hornet, Norwegian Wasp, Median Wasp
- Moths: Lycaena dione
- Beetles: Asian Lady Beetle, Agrilus cyanescens
- Hummingbirds: Calliope Hummingbird
- Birds: Spotted Towhee

Butterflies that use this plant

Documented host and nectar records. Each links to a planting guide for that butterfly.

Full plant details

Where it grows

Habitat: WoodlandThe wild plant community it grows in.
Native range: Much of the USA and southern CanadaUnited States (33): AK, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, IA, ID, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MN, MT, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, SD, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY. Canada (7): AB, BC, MB, ON, QC, SK, YT. Where it grows wild on its own, by state and province.
Native distribution: Quebec to Alaska, scattered southward to Massachusetts, West Virginia, Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, Colorado and CaliforniaThe same native range, usually more exact than the state list, and often noting where it has spread beyond it.

Growing conditions

Light: Full sun to shadeHow much sun it takes, from full sun to full shade.
Moisture: Dry to moistThe soil dampness it prefers, from dry to wet.
Hardiness zones: USDA 2–10 · Canadian 1–9The cold-to-heat climate range it survives.
Soil: Infertile sands and gravelsThe soils it grows in naturally.
Soil texture: Light to heavy (sandy to clay)The soil grade it prefers, from sand to clay.
Soil pH: 6.0–7.8The acidity to alkalinity it tolerates (7 is neutral).
Soil quality: MediumHow rich a soil it needs. Many natives prefer lean soil and flop in rich beds.
Water use: MediumHow thirsty it is, a rough guide to how often to water.
Salinity tolerance: MediumHow well it copes with salty soil, near roads or the coast.
Lime (CaCO₃) tolerance: HighHow well it copes with chalky, lime-rich soil.

Growth & form

Height: up to 5 ft (to 1.5 m)Typical mature height.
Spread: ~7 ft (2 m)How wide one plant gets, a guide to spacing.
Life cycle: PerennialWhether it lives a single season (annual), two (biennial), or returns for years (perennial).
Growth rate: ModerateA relative ranking versus other plants of the same type (USDA), not an absolute rate.
Shape: RoundedIts overall silhouette.
Root depth: 18+ in (46+ cm)How far the roots reach, a guide to drought resilience and transplanting.

Flowers, foliage & fruit

Type: ShrubWhat kind of plant it is.
Bloom: May–SepWhen it flowers.
Flower color: White, PinkThe bloom color, or colors.
Fruit/Seeds: ripens Jan–DecThe seed or fruit it sets after flowering.
Toxicity: Poisonous if eatenWhether any part is poisonous to people or pets.

Propagation & seed

Cold stratification: Required (cold, moist)Whether seed needs a cold, moist spell before it will germinate.
Propagation: Bare root, containerHow to start new plants.
Seed: ~0.1 million seeds per poundNotes on the seed and how to sow it.
Seed spread rate: SlowHow readily it self-sows. Slow or none means well-behaved, not a spreader.
Seedling vigor: MediumHow strongly young seedlings establish.
Vegetative spread: ModerateWhether it creeps outward or stays put in a clump.