Quick Facts
Exposure: Part Shade to Full Shade
Height at Maturity: 4-7 Feet
Usage: Flower Gardens
Shipped As: Bare-root
Planting Zones: 3-8
Product Details
Our black cohosh plants are Actaea racemosa, a tall native woodland perennial that sends up white flower spikes in summer. The leaves form a clump of divided foliage, and the blooms rise well above it. Bare-root plants ship in packs of 25, 50, 100 and 500, for shade borders, woodland gardens and wholesale orders.
Black Cohosh Size, Zones and Light
Do not judge black cohosh by its first-year clump. In bloom the flower stalks climb 4 to 7 feet while the plant spreads only 2 to 4, so it grows taller than wide, in zones 3 to 8. Dappled light through deep shade is fine, but a couple of hours of morning sun is what sets flowers, and in full gloom you may get leaves and no spikes. Give it rich, moist soil that drains and runs from acidic to neutral.
Black Cohosh Flowers
The spikes are the show: 1 to 2 feet of tiny creamy flowers from May into August. Up close the blooms have no petals at all, just a fuzz of stamens around a white center. Hold off on planting it right beside a patio, because the smell is strong and faintly medicinal. Hummingbirds and butterflies work the spikes, and spring azure caterpillars eat the leaves.
Where to Plant Black Cohosh
Use it at the back of a woodland border, where the tall spikes can rise above ferns and hostas. Deer leave it alone. Our woodland border ideas for shade perennials pair it with plants that share its conditions.
Good to Know About Black Cohosh
Black cohosh is slow to establish, so expect modest growth the first year. It grows from a rhizome, and a clump can be divided to make more plants. Keep the soil evenly moist and mulch with leaf mold. For other plants that deer pass by, see our deer-resistant native plants.
Black Cohosh Packs and Shipping
Black cohosh plants ship bare-root in packs of 25, 50, 100 and 500. Volume pricing available. Browse more perennials for sale.