Spicebush (Lindera benzoin)

Early to mid April the woods all along Federal Twist Road are sparkling with hundreds of Lindera benzoin in bloom. These native shrubs have an attractive open structure, spicy fragrance on a warm day (thus the moniker 'Spice bush'), and a multitude of very small flowers that make a dramatic impression where they grow in sufficient numbers. Warm yellow foliage in fall, too. Fortunately, deer avoid them.

This is a great substitute for the overused and, in my opinion, garish forsythia.