Center Glow Ninebark

Center Glow is a deciduous ninebark cultivar whose new leaves emerge red-purple with a gold area near the base, then mature to a darker red-purple. It forms a dense, upright, mounded shrub and bears white flower clusters in early summer, providing both foliage color and seasonal bloom. ## Form and seasonal interest The U.S. plant patent describes a mature height and spread of 6–8 feet, an upright, mounded, vase-shaped form, and flowering from mid-June into early July. It records USDA Zone 3 and notes that foliage color changes as the season progresses. The [patent description and issue record](https://patents.justia.com/patent/PP16894) and [Canadian PBR variety record](https://active.inspection.gc.ca/english/plaveg/pbrpov/cropreport/nin/app00006051e.shtml) identify the exact ‘Center Glow’ selection. ## Site and landscape use Use it where a substantial shrub can develop, as a specimen, screen, or mixed-border plant. The species grows in sun to part shade and tolerates a range of soils, as summarized by [North Carolina Extension](https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/physocarpus-opulifolius/); the patent trial plants were grown outdoors in full sun. The distinctive young foliage gives the shrub a seasonal color transition rather than a single flat leaf color. ## Maintenance Prune after flowering if shaping is needed, since ninebarks bloom on older wood. Remove dead or crossing stems and thin older branches when rejuvenation is desired. Allow the natural upright, rounded outline to develop rather than clipping it repeatedly.