General Culture:

Easily grown in average, medium, well-drained soils in part shade to full shade. Prefers moist, humusy, organically rich soils. Soils must not be allowed to dry out. If regularly watered, foliage will usually remain attractive throughout the growing season. A summer compost mulch helps retain soil moisture. Removing faded flower stalks will not prolong bloom but may improve plant appearance, particularly if a ground cover look is desired. On the other hand, many gardeners leave the flower stalks in place after bloom because of the continuing ornamental interest of the dried seed heads. Divide clumps when overcrowding occurs (every 3-4 years).

Noteworthy Characteristics:

Astilbes are mainstays of shade and woodland gardens. They are clump-forming perennials which feature graceful, fern-like mounds of mostly basal, 2-3 ternately compound leaves, usually with sharply-toothed leaflets, and tiny flowers densely packed into erect to arching, plume-like flower panicles rising above the foliage on slender, upright stems. ‘Snowdrift’ is a hybrid cultivar which is sometimes grouped under the arendsii hybrids (e.g., by Blooms of Bressingham who introduced the plant) and sometimes under A. simplicifolia (e.g., by AHS A to Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants). It features a foliage mound to 18” tall of deeply-cut, medium green leaves and wide, feather-like panicles of pure white flowers on erect stems typically rising to 24” tall in late spring.