marsh Labrador tea
Ledum palustre · Ericaceae
marsh Labrador tea (Ledum palustre) is a perennial shrub in the Ericaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 1 and warmer, down to about -62°F.
At a glance
| Type | shrub USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 0.5 ft USDA |
| Soil pH | 4.5–7.5 USDA |
| Bloom | June–August USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 1 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | shrub Derived |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
Its drought tolerance is rated none — it needs reliable moisture. It is recorded on soils from pH 4.5 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 1.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 0.5 ft, making it a low, mat-forming plant.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of June through August.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. It carries conspicuous autumn colour. Its active growth period is spring. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 10 to 180 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 120 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 12 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Propagating it
Container stock is the only propagation method USDA lists. Seed needs cold stratification — a period of moist chilling — before it will germinate, so sow in autumn or chill it artificially before a spring sowing.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals find it moderately palatable, so expect deer and rabbits to take an interest.
Role in a guild
Shrub layer. In a layered planting this is woody mid-level structure between the understory and the ground. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Ledum
- western Labrador tea Ledum glandulosum
- bog Labrador tea Ledum groenlandicum
Similar role and hardiness
- mountain alder Alnus viridis
- Saskatoon serviceberry Amelanchier alnifolia
- American red raspberry Rubus idaeus
- russet buffaloberry Shepherdia canadensis
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol LEPA11, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, flower conspicuous, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Type.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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