Summary ⁷

Spiraea alba, commonly known as narrowleaf meadowsweet, pale bridewort, or pipestem, grows on wet soils of the Allegheny Mountains and other portions of eastern North America....

Comments ⁸

This is one of two native Spiraea spp. in Illinois. The other species, Spiraea tomentosa (Steeplebush), is a more hairy shrub with pink flowers. In Illinois, it is less common than Meadowsweet and prefers sandy wetlands. Another species, Spiraea latifolia (Eastern Meadowsweet), is found in wetlands further to the east. This species is very similar in appearance to Spiraea alba (Meadowsweet), except it has leaves that are more broad. Sometimes Eastern Meadowsweet is considered a variety of Meadowsweet and referred to as Spiraea alba latifolia. The showy Spiraea spp. that are commonly cultivated as landscape plants have been introduced from the Old World. They rarely escape from cultivation and are not often found in natural habitats.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) peupleloup, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://www.flickr.com/photos/10601432@N08/2840454939
2. USDA NRCS PLANTS Database, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), https://plants.usda.gov/gallery/large/spla2_001_lvd.jpg
3. (c) "<a href=""http://www.knps.org"">Kentucky Native Plant Society</a>. Scanned by <a href=""http://www.omnitekinc.com/"">Omnitek Inc</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=spal2_001_avd.tif
4. (c) "<a href=""http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/WLI/"">USDA NRCS Wetland Science Institute</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=spal2_002_avp.tif
5. (c) "<a href=""http://nt.ars-grin.gov/"">ARS Systematic Botany and Mycology Laboratory</a>. United States, MA, Arnold Arboretum.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=spal2_003_ahp.tif
6. (c) "<a href=""http://www.wli.nrcs.usda.gov"">NRCS National Wetland Team, Fort Worth, TX</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=spal2_004_avd.tif
7. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiraea_alba
8. (c) John Hilty, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/29444743

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• eFloras.org
• Flora of North America (beta)
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• Go Botany
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• NatureServe Explorer 2.0
• NBN Atlas
• SEINet Symbiota portals
• Tropicos
• USDA PLANTS database
• VASCAN by Canadensys
• World Flora Online

Range Map

(c) Discover Life and original sources, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC-SA)

iNat Map