Actaea simplex (Atropurpurea Group) ‘James Compton’ (Baneberry)

Fabulous at adding architectural height and late summer blooms to a shaded border, award-winning Actaea simplex ‘James Compton’ (Baneberry) is a striking, compact, bronze-leaved bugbane variety. Opening from pink buds in late summer to early fall, attractive, purple stemmed fluffy spires, packed with deliciously fragrant white flowers with a pink tinge, gracefully bob and sway in the breeze. They rise elegantly above a bronze, almost black, lacy foliage, which provides excellent texture and color to the landscape throughout the growing season. Spectacular with golden Japanese Forest Grass (Hakonechloa Macra).

• Won the prestigious Award of Garden Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society
• Typically growing up to 3 ft. tall (90 cm) and 2 ft. wide (60 cm), this Baneberry thrives in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade to full shade. Moist, moderately fertile soil enriched with organic matter is preferred. Don’t let the soil dry out, or the foliage will suffer. Provide a sheltered location from strong winds. The flower spires tend to bend toward bright light when grown in substantial shade.
• Trouble-free and easy to care for, Baneberry is a welcomed addition to beds, borders, woodlands, cottage gardens, and naturalized areas.
• Attracts birds and butterflies, and deer ignore it!
• Cut back after flowering or fruiting. Propagate by seed sown in pots in a cold frame in the fall or by division in early spring.
• Actaea simplex is native to Kamchatka, Sakhalin, and Siberian regions of Russia, western China, Manchuria, Mongolia, Korea, and Japan.