Japanese-Korean fairy bells is a small woodland perennial from East Asia that hangs one or two little white bells under its stem tips in spring. It spreads by creeping underground stems into loose patches on the forest floor. It is not native to the US, but it is sometimes grown in shade gardens.
Appearance
- Growth form
- A low perennial about 6–12 in (15–30 cm) tall, sometimes up to about 16 in (40 cm), that spreads by creeping stems to form a groundcover.
- Flowers
- One or two white, bell-shaped flowers about 0.4 in (1 cm) across hang below the stem tips.
- Flowering time
- April to May in its native range.
- Fruit
- The flowers are followed by round, purple-black berries.
Look-alikes
Japanese fairy bellsDisporum sessile
Its creamy flowers stay closed like little tubes with green tips, while this species has small white bells that open. It is also often taller, up to 24 in (60 cm).
Why they get mixed upBoth are Asian fairy bells grown in shade gardens, and the names are similar.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Woodland floor
- Shady forests
- Range
- Native to Japan, the Korean Peninsula, the Kuril Islands, southern Sakhalin in Russia, and northeastern Shandong in China. It does not grow wild in the US.
- Preferred conditions
- Grows in the shade of low-elevation woods, including under deciduous trees.
Growing it
- Care
- Sometimes grown in North American shade and woodland gardens. In Japan, collectors grow forms with striped or variegated leaves.
- Propagation
- Spreads both by seed and by creeping underground stems.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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