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Amber Jubilee Ninebark

Physocarpus opulifolius 'Jefam' (PP# 23,177)

Amber Jubilee Ninebark

Physocarpus opulifolius 'Jefam' (PP# 23,177)

This product is currently out of stock and unavailable.

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How are the heights measured?

All tree, and nothin' but the tree! We measure from the top of the soil to the top of the tree; the height of the container or the root system is never included in our measurements.

What is a gallon container?

Nursery containers come in a variety of different sizes, and old-school nursery slang has stuck. While the industry-standard terminology is to call the sizes "Gallon Containers", that doesn't exactly translate to the traditional liquid "gallon" size we think of. You'll find we carry young 1-gallons, up to more mature 7-gallons ranging anywhere from 6 inches to 6ft.

How does the delivery process work?

All of our orders ship via FedEx Ground! Once your order is placed online, our magic elves get right to work picking, staging, boxing and shipping your trees. Orders typically ship out within 2 business days. You will receive email notifications along the way on the progress of your order, as well as tracking information to track your plants all the way to their new home!

Why are some states excluded from shipping?

The short & sweet answer is: "United States Department of Agriculture Restrictions." Every state has their own unique USDA restrictions on which plants they allow to come into their state. While we wish we could serve everyone, it's for the safety of native species and helps prevent the spread of invasive disease & pests. We've gotta protect good ole' Mother Nature, after all.

About Me

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The Amber Jubilee Ninebark is a remarkably rugged and hardy shrub that has a brilliant kaleidoscope of foliage colors throughout the seasons. In spring the new leaves are bright orange, with yellow veins. In summer they turn greener, and then in fall the become vibrant purple – there is never a dull moment with this plant in your garden. Plus, this plant is extremely cold-hardy, even in zone 2, and it grows in difficult locations easily. Use it to brighten your beds of boring green bushes. Grow it as a colorful, informal low hedge. Use it in rough parts of your garden, and since it is a native plant, use it in wild gardens too. You will love the ever-changing colors, and the brightness it brings for so little work.

  • Glowing orange spring foliage
  • Rich purple fall colors
  • Compact and bushy growth
  • Very tough and reliable in difficult locations
  • Cold-hardy to minus 50 degrees

The Amber Jubilee Ninebark will have the best leaf colors in full sun, but it also grows well in partial shade. Plant it in any well-drained soil, including poor urban soils, rocky and gravely soils, and wild areas. It will grow where few other plants can, and once established it is drought resistant too. It has no significant pests or diseases, and it only needs the occasional trimming to keep it neat, or it can be left to grow naturally, and it will still look great.

Plant Hardiness Zones 2-8
Mature Width 3-4
Mature Height 5-6
Sun Needs Full Sun, Partial Sun
Zones 2-8

Colored foliage is the modern way to go, bringing color to your garden from spring to fall, instead of for just a couple of weeks a year of flowers. Ideally this should be on a low-maintenance plant that is untroubled by cold or heat, and that thrives in a wide range of conditions. For all that and more, look no further than the Amber Jubilee Ninebark. This tough plant gives a kaleidoscope of color from spring to fall, beginning bright orange, turning green in summer, and then brilliant purple in fall – wow, what a show.

The Amber Jubilee Ninebark grows to around 6 feet tall, with upright, arching branches, and a spread of 3 or 4 feet wide. The flexible stems have peeling bark, which sheds to reveal multiple shades of soft brown to red – all those shades are why it is called ‘ninebark’. This is a handsome feature from late fall, through winter and in early spring before the leaves appear, but it is the foliage we came for. The leaves are round, but with 3 to 5 deep lobes, about 4 inches across. They grow in clusters all along the stems, and in spring they emerge wonderful shades of bright, showy orange, with yellow veins. The whole plants glows with this rich coloring, which persists for weeks, before gradually turning greenish for a few weeks during the summer. Then, with the first cool nights of fall, the leaves begin to darken, soon becoming powerful shades of deep purple, glowing darkly beneath the yellows and oranges of your fall trees. This shrub brings a powerful and colorful presence into your garden, and it asks for so little in return. Older stems produce clusters of white flowers in spring, and these add interest too. They turn into reddish-brown drooping seed heads, that look very pretty in early winter, after the last leaves have fallen.

Growing Amber Jubilee Ninebark

Use the Amber Jubilee Ninebark to add interest to shrub beds. It looks great planted among evergreens, making a terrific foliage color contrast with them. Use it planted in a row – space the bushes 3 feet apart – to make an informal hedge or screen. Plant on the margins of a wooded area – this is a native American plant – and enhance your natural areas in a non-invasive way. Use it on the banks of streams and rivers to control erosion, or at the edges of a mixed windbreak. Wherever you plant it, you will love it, and its easy growing.

The Amber Jubilee Ninebark is an incredibly tough and reliable shrub, that will grow almost anywhere. It is very cold-hardy, tolerating minus 50 degrees in zone 2 with ease. It also grows well in warmer conditions, all the way into zone 8. Wherever you live you can enjoy this shrub. It grows well in almost all soils, including drier soils, but not in soil that is regularly saturated with water. It does best in full sun, especially in the north, but it will grow well in partial shade, although the leaf coloring will not be as bright. It has no significant pests or diseases, and this shrub will grow in almost any location, including harsh urban ones. If you have tough places to plant, ninebark is your ‘go-to’. You can prune in late spring as needed, or in late winter. Annual trimming consists of shortening back the branches by about one-third and removing a few older branches at the ground. If you leave plants untrimmed, and the growth becomes too open after some years, you can even cut this plant right down to the ground, and have it start again, with vigorous and bushy new growth rapidly shooting up. 

History and Origins of Amber Jubilee Ninebark

Ninebark, Physocarpus opulifolius, grows naturally in the eastern states, from New York to Florida, and today it occurs across almost the whole country and up into Canada as well. It is found mostly on gravel areas near rivers, on banks, and in thickets under trees. There are a number of colored leaf forms, and James Richard Durand, of Jeffries Nurseries, in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada, has been working on breeding new forms for years. In the spring of 2003, he took pollen from a variety called ‘Dart’s Gold’, with golden leaves, and used it to pollinate a variety called ‘Monlo’, or Diabolo®, which has purple foliage. He grew the seeds, and in spring 2006 he picked one seedling with the most interesting characteristics, and he named it ‘Jefam’.  He patented it in 2012, for its unique appearance and leaf colorings, and since 2003 was the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, the queen of both England and Canada, he decided to sell it under the name, Amber Jubilee. Our plants are produced under license, from stem pieces identical to that original plant – you get the real thing. The ever-changing color palette of this plant makes it a wonderful addition to your garden, but it has become hugely popular, so order now, while our stock lasts.

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Amber Jubilee Ninebark

Physocarpus opulifolius 'Jefam' (PP# 23,177)