shrub
Japanese pieris 'Mountain Fire'
Pieris japonica 'Mountain Fire'
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Japanese pieris 'Mountain Fire' is a slow-growing evergreen shrub hardy in zones 5–8. Expect 6–10 ft of height and 5–7 ft of spread; our lists space it 5.5 ft apart. It does best in part sun to part shade with average water. Expect white flowers in March to April. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the structure role: a shrub that holds the bed's shape at the back all year. Deer usually leave it alone, and it is toxic to dogs and cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in Florida and the Gulf, Texas and the South-Central states, the Desert Southwest and the Mountain West, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Pieris japonica 'Mountain Fire'
- Plant type
- Shrub, evergreen
- Hardiness zones
- 5 to 8
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours)
- Water
- Medium
- Soil
- Needs acidic, well-drained soil rich in organic matter.
- Mature size
- 6–10 ft tall × 5–7 ft wide
- Spacing
- 5.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Bloom
- Mar–Apr · white
- Roles in a bed
- Structure
- Styles
- classic, modern
- Deer resistance
- High: deer rarely eat it
- Pets
- Toxic to dogs and cats. Japanese pieris is on the ASPCA toxic list (grayanotoxins).
- Native to
- Not native to the US (or a garden hybrid)
- Pot size and price
- 3-gallon pot, typically $35–$55 (easy to find)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Water deeply once or twice a week through the first summer, more in heat waves, so the root ball never dries out.
- Pruning
- Remove spent flower clusters after bloom; prune lightly.
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Rutgers NJAES deer resistance ratings (A-D); state noxious weed lists / Invasive Plant Atlas of the US; typical 2026 US garden-centre and big-box listings. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Japanese pieris 'Mountain Fire', across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost'Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost'perennial · zones 3–8
- Korean boxwood 'Wintergreen'Buxus sinica var. insularis 'Wintergreen'shrub · zones 4–9
- Dwarf boxwood 'Green Gem'Buxus 'Green Gem'shrub · zones 4–8
- Hardy geranium 'Rozanne'Geranium 'Gerwat' (Rozanne)perennial · zones 5–8
- Lenten roseHelleborus × hybridusperennial · zones 4–9
- Japanese sedge 'Ice Dance'Carex morrowii 'Ice Dance'ornamental grass · zones 5–9
If you can't find it
Substitutes our engine offers for Japanese pieris 'Mountain Fire': same role in the bed, passing the same rules.
- SweetboxSarcococca confusazones 6–9 · flagged toxic to pets
- Dwarf Alberta spruce 'Conica'Picea glauca 'Conica'zones 3–7 · not flagged toxic to pets
- Inkberry holly 'Shamrock'Ilex glabra 'Shamrock'zones 4–9 · flagged toxic to pets
- Dwarf yaupon holly 'Nana'Ilex vomitoria 'Nana'zones 7–10 · flagged toxic to pets
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants