White;pink (Large white panicles of double flowers in late spring and early summer; pinkish and then brown panicles in the fall, persisting into the winter)

Foliage Notes:

Green (New growth is gray-green in the spring, becoming a deep green in the summer); Multi-Colored (Reddish, orange-brown, to purplish fall foliage)

Ultimate Height:

5-8 feet

Ultimate Spread:

5-10 feet

Light Requirements:

Soil Notes:

Requires moist, well-drained soil; a layer of mulch is advisable to keep the roots cool

Range:

Cultivated origin

Diagnostic Characteristics:

Large (up to 8" long) leaves are opposite, simple, and deeply lobed, resembling large red oak leaves with a white tomentose below. Large leaf scars are triangular. Large (12-15" long) upright flower clusters (panicles) of double, sterile, showy flowers (sepals) emerge in early summer. In the fall, the flowers turn a purplish pink and then brown, persisting into the winter. Cinnamon brown bark on older stems peels and exfoliates.

Special Characteristics:

Flowering Characteristics 289

Foliage Characteristics 285

Fall Color 238

Additional Information

A unique plant with attractive flower panicles and large, coarse, handsome foliage. 'Snowflake' is a large cultivar (up to 8' high and 10' wide) that has large (up to 15" long) flower panicles of double sterile flowers. Tops (including flower buds formed in fall) can die back when winter temperatures go much below – 20 degrees F (often in Zone 6b and colder). Flowers form on previous season's growth. Thus, no flowers will appear in the years when the tops are killed. May be best used for foliage effect in cold areas. Not very drought tolerant. Spreads by stolons forming colonies. Unusually coarse texture makes this plant difficult to use in some combinations. Winter killed branches need removal.