Sweet pepperbush (summersweet) (Clethra alnifolia) grows 6 to 8 feet tall with very fragrant white flowers in upright spires. Blooming in mid-summer, sweet pepperbush is attractive to Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. Its fruit is eaten by birds such as Northern Cardinals,Black-capped Chickadees, Tufted Titmice, and sparrows, and small mammals. It likes damp areas along the edges of swamps and streams and is perfect for naturalizing these areas. It can thrive in other moist areas if kept well-watered during drought. It spreads from suckers, forming thickets.