Flowering shrub

Pearlbush

Exochorda racemosa

Pearlbush (Exochorda racemosa) is a shrub in the Rosaceae family, introduced in the lower 48 states.

🌷 Flowering shrubIntroduced in the lower 48

Pearlbush is a popular flowering shrub. It's on our flower lists for 18 states.

11states where USDA records it

18Bloomipedia state lists include it

79U.S. sightings*

*iNaturalist research-grade observations, as of October 23, 2026. Our state lists also include states where people grow it in gardens, so they can outnumber USDA's wild-plant records. Planted garden shrubs are mostly excluded from research grade.

On our lists for: Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia

Quick look

Exochorda racemosa, the pearlbush or common pearlbush, is a species of plant in the family Rosaceae. This species is mostly found in China and Japan.
From Wikipedia's article Exochorda racemosa, CC BY-SA 4.0.

It belongs to the Rosaceae family. ^iNaturalist
USDA PLANTS describes it as a shrub with a perennial life cycle. ^{USDA PLANTS}
USDA PLANTS lists it as introduced in the lower 48 states and records it in 11 states. ^{USDA PLANTS}
iNaturalist has 13 research-grade sightings of it in South Carolina, ranking #130 among the 171 flowers on our South Carolina list. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 13 research-grade sightings of it in Virginia, ranking #138 among the 189 flowers on our Virginia list. ^iNaturalist
iNaturalist has 12 research-grade sightings of it in North Carolina, ranking #146 among the 192 flowers on our North Carolina list. ^iNaturalist

When does it bloom?

Flowering records by month across the U.S. (iNaturalist research-grade observations marked “Flowering”) (4 records)

Bloom time in the 18 states whose Bloomipedia list includes it

State	Type	Peak bloom	Sightings*
South Carolina	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	13
Virginia	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	13
North Carolina	🌷 Garden	few records (1)	12
Arkansas	🌷 Garden	few records (1)	11
Georgia	🌷 Garden	few records (1)	9
New Jersey	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	4
New York	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	2
Delaware	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	1
Missouri	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	1
California	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Connecticut	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Illinois	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Louisiana	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Massachusetts	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Michigan	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Ohio	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Oregon	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0
Vermont	🌷 Garden	no flowering records	0

Conservation status

Federal (U.S. ESA)

Not listed No U.S. Endangered Species Act listing in the USFWS ECOS database. ^{USFWS ECOS}

NatureServe global

G5 Secure worldwide. ^NatureServe

State rare plant lists

Not listed Not on the official rare plant list in 15 of our 18 states.

See each state

Virginia: Not listed Not on Virginia endangered and threatened plant and insect species (2VAC5-320-10). NatureServe has no Virginia rank for it. ^2VAC5-320-10
North Carolina: Not listed Not on North Carolina Protected Plant Species List (02 NCAC 48F .0301). NatureServe has no North Carolina rank for it. ^{02 NCAC 48F .0301}
Georgia: Not listed Not on Georgia protected plants (Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 391-4-10-.09; a 2026 update is proposed). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Georgia. ^{Ga. R. 391-4-10-.09}
New Jersey: Not listed Not on New Jersey Endangered Plant Species List (N.J.A.C. 7:5C-5.1). NatureServe has no New Jersey rank for it. ^{N.J.A.C. 7:5C-5.1}
New York: Not listed Not on New York protected native plants (6 NYCRR § 193.3). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in New York. ^{6 NYCRR § 193.3}
Delaware: Not listed Not on Rare and Uncommon Plants of Delaware (DNREC, 2024; informational, Delaware has no state plant-protection list). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Delaware. ^{DE rare plants 2024}
Missouri: Not listed Not on Missouri Wildlife Code endangered species (3 CSR 10-4.111), plants. NatureServe has no Missouri rank for it. ^{3 CSR 10-4.111}
California: Not listed Not on California state-listed endangered, threatened and rare plants (14 CCR § 670.2), per CDFW's CNDDB list (July 2026). NatureServe has no California rank for it. ^{CNDDB listed plants (July 2026)}
Connecticut: Not listed Not on Connecticut Endangered, Threatened and Special Concern Plants (RCSA 26-306; 2015 list). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Connecticut. ^{CT E/T/SC list}
Illinois: Not listed Not on Illinois List of Endangered and Threatened Flora (17 Ill. Adm. Code 1050), per the Endangered Species Protection Board's 2025 checklist. NatureServe has no Illinois rank for it. ^{IL E&T checklist 2025}
Massachusetts: Not listed Not on Massachusetts Endangered Species Act list (321 CMR 10.90). NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in Massachusetts. ^{MESA list}
Michigan: Not listed Not on Michigan endangered and threatened plants (Mich. Admin. Code R 299.1028, eff. March 20, 2023). NatureServe has no Michigan rank for it. ^{R 299.1028}
Ohio: Not listed Not on Ohio endangered and threatened plants (Ohio Adm. Code 1501:18-1-03, eff. Dec. 26, 2024). NatureServe has no Ohio rank for it. ^{OAC 1501:18-1-03}
Oregon: Not listed Not on Oregon endangered and threatened plants (OAR 603-073-0070). NatureServe has no Oregon rank for it. ^{OAR 603-073-0070}
Vermont: Not listed Not on Endangered and Threatened Plants of Vermont (10 V.S.A. chap. 123; list of Feb 10, 2022). NatureServe has no Vermont rank for it. ^{Vermont E&T list}

South Carolina

No list South Carolina has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's South Carolina ranks instead. NatureServe: SNA, not applicable (usually because it isn't native there) in South Carolina.

Arkansas

No list Arkansas has no state law listing endangered or threatened plants, so we show NatureServe's Arkansas ranks instead. NatureServe has no Arkansas rank for it.

Louisiana

No list Louisiana has no state list of endangered or threatened plants separate from the federal list, so we show federal status and NatureServe's Louisiana ranks. NatureServe has no Louisiana rank for it.

Rare elsewhere

No other U.S. state ranks it S1, S2, SH or SX.

Checked October 23, 2026. Rankings and lists can change, so follow the links for the latest.

Can you eat it?

For peopleNot well documented

None of the sources we checked (NC State Extension (no edibility or poison notes on its page), USDA PLANTS) say whether it's edible or poisonous for people. ^{NC State Extension}

For petsNot well documented

It isn't on the ASPCA plant list, and NC State Extension doesn't flag it for pets.

🌿 Never eat a wild plant unless you're certain of its ID; this isn't medical advice. Worried about a person? Call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Worried about a pet? Call your vet.