Spicebush is an early blooming shrub that is found on the banks of Scarboro Creek below the Visitors Center and along several of the Arboretums trails. It also blooms in the wildflower garden at the Visitors Center during March. Spicebush is dioecious (i.e., it bears male and female flowers on separate plants). When in bloom, the shrub is covered with many small yellow-greenish flowers that appear before the leaves.

Three of the Spicebush plants found in the wildflower garden have pistillate flowers while the one close to the bridge entering the Marsh area is male. The crushed leaves and twigs are aromatic, which is the basis for its common name. In the fall, the shrub bears bright red, oblong fruits which persist into the winter and provide a food source for birds.

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