Pearlbush Snow Day Surprise

* Common name: Pearlbush Snow Day Surprise

* Botanical name: Exochorda Snow Day Surprise

* What it is: Pearlbush is an old-fashioned, early-spring-blooming shrub that fell out of favor because of its rangy habit and one-dimensional attraction (two to three weeks of white flowers and that’s it for the year).

   Proven Winners developed an improved version of pearlbush called Snow Day Surprise that’s neater and more compact and virtually covered in snow-white flowers from about mid-April to month’s end most years.

   It still doesn’t fruit, have colorful leaves, or interesting fall foliage, but at least the above two improvements and its early bloom time might earn it a place in the spring garden.

   Pearlbush gets its nickname from the round, white flower buds that look like pearls just before they open.

* Size: Grows a bushy three to four feet tall and wide.

* Where to use: Sunny to partly shaded spots, such as western, southern, or even eastern foundations or mixed with perennials in a flower garden or border garden.

* Care: No pruning needed so long as size is OK, but to maximize neatness or compactness, shear or prune by one-third to one-half immediately after spring flowers fade.

   An annual spring scattering of a balanced, organic granular fertilizer is helpful but usually not necessary. Water needed only in very dry spells after the first year.

* Great partner: Pairs especially well with April-blooming bulbs, i.e. daffodils, hyacinths, and early tulips, which bloom at the same time. Or underplant with pink- or rose-blooming creeping phlox, low perennials that also overlap pearlbush’s bloom time.