It is a very good plant, nice foliage and good fall color but it is rabbit candy.

This was mine in bloom a couple years ago.

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tj

In a moment of frugality (all too rare for me at garden centers!), I passed up a nice big fothergilla at a late season sale. Now six months later I'm still wishing I had picked it up!

Fothergilla should be perfectly fine for Wisconsin. Beaver Creek Nursery on the IL/WI border field grows this species, and they've have even named one 'Beaver Creek'. Maybe you should try that one.

Here's the typical habit of young B&B plants in a newly planted landscape.

Here ya go. These are all Mt. Airy.

This location got morning sun 9-12ish

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These 2 got sun from about 11-2

2004:
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2006:
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2008:
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2009:
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I think I finally started pruning them after it reached this size.

They started to get shaded out by other growth over the next couple of years. Less and less red. Then I moved.

Mt. Airy in typical autumn color. It is one of the latest shrubs to turn and holds color well in my garden. It is in full sun.
{{gwi:248950}}From 2013

Thank you for all of those great pictures! Very helpful, and I did end up buying Fothergilla Blue Shadow....the foliage color is stunning.

My concern is that I'd read on a number of blogs that it gets to about 4' and that it's shorter than Mt Airy. I believe the tag said 4-5 feet also.

Now, I'm reading 6', which is too tall for my bed.

I like shrubs with the natural look and only trim out deadwood, etc, to keep them nice looking.

Does anyone have a Fothergilla Blue Shadow that actually reached 6 feet?

Wendy...my house is the same color, so it should look nice there!

Tsugajunkie, that is a stunning picture!

So happy to be in the "Fothergilla Club" now!

Fothergilla is a great shrub. Mine is Mt Airy and has not reached 6 feet, and it's been around 8 years now. The deer and rabbits do keep it trimmed, tho' :)

That's good news, thank you Jayco...hate to pound this thread to death, but still hoping that someone with Blue Shadow might come across this and have an idea on height. I am going to spray them with a liquid fence type product, hopefully they won't chomp on them and discover how tasty they are. Right now, the bunnies are very happy with the hosta buffet...which is going to end very quickly for them, one way or the other!

tsugajunkie -that is an adorable statue! great pix everyone! love this shrub, good to know about peter rabbit.

Thanks. We call it our "Praise the Lord" statue.

tj