I once knew some folks back in southern Virginia whose bridal veil spirea stopped my car in the middle of the road because it was so beautiful. I tried a couple times to find them at home to find out 1) what these beautiful bushes were, and 2) how they got them that way. They were each over 6' high and about 8' to 10' wide, and looked like white fountains lining the 1/8 mile driveway.

He said all he does is prune them back to the desired size immediately after the blooms fade, and doesn't touch them the rest of the year. They were planted in hard red clay, and the yard was pretty neglected other than being mowed regularly, but the spirea were unbelievable.

Aphids were pretty thick up there, too, so I wonder if the bush is just strong enough to withstand them? It could be the pouring rain that's hurting them more. It may be cheaper to fix the rain gutter problem than rent a backhoe to dig up the spirea.

I wish I knew more to help you, but at least I hope to encourage you. If it were me, I think I'd do what you're doing, and find out what it would take to keep them, even if it meant paying good money to have them dug up and moved, and trying every aphid spray known to man. I heard diluted dish soap works, but that could be a myth. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Dish Soap Kills Aphids & Other Soft-Bodied Insects

We have ladybugs everywhere since we moved to this area. I have less aphids on my milkweeds than I have every had. You can buy them at most good nurserys in containers.
I have been successful before in killing them by spraying the plants with liquid seaweed. Maybe it's the salt in it but since it is used as a foliar fertilizer it isn't harmful to the plant. I haven't seen it listed anywhere as an aphid killer but got the tip from a butterfly farm.

I use the gardenville brand but have seen it from other companies.

Good luck! I have my first spirea and it is covered with buds I can't wait until it blooms!

Danna

Here is a link that might be useful: one type of liquid seaweed

I don't have time to respond to the above posts yet but I will come back and do that soon! Thank you both for your insights! Just wanted to pop in and share this really quickly:

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Correction: Bridal *Wreath* Spirea, not bridal *veil* Ooops!

Bo, thanks for your thoughts and the story you shared about the beautiful spirea. That inspires me to try to keep these and take good care of them. I wonder if leaving them so close to the house is asking for trouble? I guess they've been like that all along...so...maybe they are actually fine? Like you said, I do need to have the gutter fixed. I think the problem may just be a clogged downspout. I know the gutters themselves are clear because my dad cleaned them less than 2 weeks ago. I was all excited about that until I saw the water pouring over the edge during our rainstorms this week. :(

Thanks for the dishsoap reminder. I can definitely try that with some Dawn this year. Or the liquid seaweed like Danna suggested!

Danna, I know ladybug larvae love to eat aphids but I have heard it's hard to keep the bugs where you release them and that they fly away at will. I would not be opposed to trying them sometime if the cost isn't too high. Your spirea is probably not long behind mine as you are in the same zone as I am, maybe a touch cooler. I'm pretty excited about the blooms on mine (see picture above) because they are so much more showy than last year! I think we did the right thing cutting them back! I was unsure about it until I saw the blooms this week! I guess I won't do much trimming since they are so little but I will deadhead them after the blooms get old. I guess with a pair of scissors? The stems are really thin and delicate still so I don't think I'll need anything heavy duty.

Any thoughts on whether I need to do something to keep the branches or leaves from touching the ground?

WOW! It's beautiful, I can't wait til mine opens! The forsythia beside it is going crazy so it shouldn't be long. Had the first bluebonnet open today. I just love spring!

Your gutters may just need that little hook piece (such a technical description!) that keeps the front edge supported. It hooks into the front of the gutter and attaches to the house.

Does anyone have a picture of the whole bush? I don't think I've ever seen these growing anywhere, but your picture is gorgeous.

Laurie

Laurie, thanks for the compliment. The bush/shrub itself is kind of messy-looking. From the above advice and everything I've found online, I'm supposed to "prune for desired shape" after flowering but I don't know exactly what that means, especially because it's so small. Here is a picture of the whole plant. It's approximately 12-18 inches tall right now.

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That's about the shape of mine, just starting to show white dots today. but mine is about 3 ft tall. Looked at Mom's in Lindale yesterday and hers is about 5 feet tall with limbs kinda "weeping willow" like billowing out and with tips touching the ground. I think they may always be a little messy but I can live with that for such an awesome flower show. Thanks for posting your photos, so pretty!

I had a row of these along my back fence for about 14 years. The branches naturally cascade and that's why they are touching the ground now, especially with the heavy blooms on them. Once they get tall, the graceful arching will be high enough that they won't hit the ground. For now it appears you're doing the right thing by putting mulch around them to keep soil from spattering up on them when it rains. The "trunks" looked huge, but they were really easy to dig up (of course I wasn't going to move them, just remove them so I didn't worry about getting a good root ball). Once you get out about a foot from the "trunk" the roots are pretty small. I was able to dig them up by myself. I never could figure out how you were supposed to prune them to shape either, so mine looked kinda wild, but since they weren't in the front of the house I just let them go. The blooms were worth it! Now I have too much shade, so sadly they are gone. Aphids were always there in the spring, but didn't seem to harm them, so I just left them alone or did the water spray every now and then. Very pretty blooms, wish I had a good place to put another.

Lindseyrose. I didn't look at this till this evening because I didn't recognize the name Reeve's Spirea
I have 10 of them and have never pruned them. They were in pots for 2 yes and when we moved here 3 yrs ago I put them in the ground and have not even given them supplemental water after the first year.
Their blooms haven't quite opened this year yet but in a couple of days and they are gorgeous.
Yours looks gorgeous and will just keep getting better
jolana

Lindsey - that's doesn't look messy at all to me. I really like it alot. I don't think I would do any pruning until it gets bigger. It has a nice shape to it right now.

Laurie

I have one in the back corner of my back yard, and I don't do anything to care for it other than toss organic fertilizer on it once or twice a year, or whenever. I've never noticed aphids on it, but then again, I've never even thought to look for aphids on it. That's just not a problem I've ever associated with them. In fact, I've never associated any pest problems with Spirea. I think the problems you're having with your's is because they are in the wrong place for optimum health. Obviously, it would be very difficult to move them successfully, but maybe next winter it would be worth giving it a try, if you wish to do so. They will tolerate some shade, but really like a bit of sun - at least 4 hours of direct sun, or lots of filtered light all day. They're really full sun plants, and will look their best with 6 hours of direct sun a day. They definately don't need or necessarily like wet soil. I don't know that mine ever gets supplemental water, as it's difficult to get water to the one I have. The location you have described that your spirea are growing in sounds like the perfect place for hydrangeas.

Sally