Euonymous alatus, commonly known as Burning Bush is a shrub that turns bright red with autumn foliage and has small orange berries that persist after the leaves have fallen. Historically these have been planted near to a house, as a foundation planting and kept trimmed to a certain shape and height. For anyone with the unfortunate experience to encounter one left untrimmed for years, these shrubs turn into monstrous small trees that spread, spread, spread.
When I arrive at a property and see an existing Burning Bush, there is no situation where I can recommend letting it stay. Not only is it an almost* entirely outdated approach to plant a shrub that wants to be 15′ in a spot that has 5′ of room, this shrub has proved to be invasive in our eastern woodlands, crowding out everything in the native understory where it gets established. I have witnessed this on properties I manage that are abutting conservation land. Birds will snack on the fruits in the fall and disperse the seeds into the woods. The seeds germinate readily even in low light situations, grow very quickly, and can be very stubbornly resistant to being pulled up with their strong fibrous roots.
My crew and I have removed some of these established giants and the root structures can be massive, thickly netted structures. These roots give a sense of how opportunistic these plants are in our region, how efficient they are at sucking up the resources from the earth and away from neighboring plants. They do not play well with others and do not add value to our ecosystem. There are many alternatives that can be planted to will bring you and your wildlife much more joy. Blueberries, Fothergilla, native Viburnums, and Winterberry Holly are just a few much better choices that display vibrant fall foliage and serve so many more ecosystem services. Unfortunately, there are still some nurseries (most online) that continue to sell Burning Bush and other invasive plants, although many states have made it illegal to plant them. Please do your part to have conversations with your neighbors, friends, and coworkers to raise awareness about these problem plants and offer the opportunity of the preferred native or proven safe non-natives. The best approach is not to be preachy about this, just lay out the facts as they are. We did not know 50 years ago what we know now, and can do better. In fact, we must! I know people can become attached to plants they grew up with or have been with “forever”. When I was a child, I would play underneath the Burning Bushes in the backyard, they made really great trees for My Little Ponies to play under. But if those had been Blueberries or Fothergilla, I still would have had fun and the woods and State Forest behind the backyard would have been much happier and healthier for future generations to enjoy.
*I say “almost” because there are some situations where I find it reasonable to plant a tree such as a Redbud or a shrub such as Ilex glabra in a space where it is anticipated to spread into a path or such place that you know you will need it pruned at certain times of year, have the capacity to keep up with that pruning, and have use for the trimmings (such as ramial woodchips, mulch, or tea). I don’t have any examples of this caveat applying to herbaceous perennials, large trees, and 99% of a managed garden in general. In just about every case, refer to the “Right Plant for the Right Place” rule.