Scientific Name:
Osmanthus heterophyllus
Pronunciation:
oz-MAN-thus het-ur-oh-FILL-us
Common Name:
variegated holly osmanthus, false holly
Family Name:
Oleaceae
Plant Type:
Broadleaf evergreen
Key ID Features:
Large evergreen shrub; leaves opposite, ovate-elliptic to oblong-oblanceolate, most 4-8cm long x 2-4cm wide, variegated, margins spinose (look like a variegated Ilex aquifolium except Ilex has alternate leaves); flowers white, fragrant, clusters, tubular, in fall, about 5mm wide.
Habit:
Dense, Upright
Form:
Round
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
3 - 5m
Mature Spread:
4 - 5m
Growth Rate:
Slow
Origin:
Garden origin, S.E. Asia / Japan / China
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 7: (-18 to -12 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade, Sheltered
Soil/Growing Medium:
Acidic, Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate, Low
Landscape Uses:
Container planting, Hedge row, Mixed shrub border, Topiary
Additional Info:
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple
Arrangement:
Opposite
Texture/Venation:
Leathery, Prickly
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green, Green-yellow, Yellow, creamy white variegation on leaf edges
Colour in Fall:
Dark-green, Green-yellow, Yellow
Shapes:
Elliptic, Oblanceolate, Oblong, Ovate
Apices:
Acuminate, Aristate
Bases:
Attenuate
Margins:
Entire, Incised
Additional Info:
Leaves variegated, holly-like leaves with spiny sharply toothed margins
Inflorescence Type:
Flowers clustered
Flower Morphology:
Dioecious plant
Number Of Petals:
4
Corolla Shape:
Salverform
Colour (petals):
Not showy, White
Flower Scent:
Fragrant, Sweet
Flower Time at Peak:
Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
Male flowers only (no functioning pistil)
Fruit Type:
Fruit Colour:
Fruiting Time:
Additional Info:
Fruit insignificant, Male cultivar (no fruit forms); female plants of species form blue-black drupes
Bark or Stem Colour:
Tan, Brown
Organ Modifications:
Spines
Propagation:
Softwood cuttings, Hardwood cuttings
Maintenance:
Low
Pest Susceptibility:
(Pest resistant, Disease resistant, Deer resistant, Rabbit resistant, Drought tolerant)
Course(s):
- HORT 2355
Location(s):
- (GAZ) GAZebo
- (GAZW) GAZebo West : q.2 cvs. Tricolor, Variegatus