One of the most fragrant trees you'll find, Osmanthus is often overlooked as a garden tree for landscaping purposes. In actual fact, it's easy to grow and bloom, even if you're a beginner gardener. We've put together an essential guide that'll help you plan your garden and give you the information needed to grow your own Osmanthus!
1. Introduction to growing Osmanthus in your garden
The best time to start growing Osmanthus trees is sometime when the weather is warm and sunny. If you live in an area with cold winters, you may want to grow them in containers so that you can bring them inside before the first frost.When choosing containers, choose ones with level stems and uniform sizes.
To grow Osmanthus, you need a few things, including one that gets mentioned a lot, soil. Don’t use potting soil; use loam or sand instead. Soil provides all the necessary nutrients, and it helps moderate the temperature of your soil — it will feel dry and warm when it’s dry, but it will also feel cold and wet when it’s wet.
Alternatively, you can use peat from a de-seeded or planted tree. This will provide some additional moisture because the wood of the peat will soak up moisture when it dries out.
Next, you need a sunny spot to place your Osmanthus, preferably one that gets full daylight. Keep your Osmanthus away from any house or building that gets direct sunlight, as this could lead to a yellowing or dead drop. If you want your Osmanthus to grow into a tree, you need to prune it back once or twice a year. This is especially important if you want to have a bonsai (tree with pointed leaves). Removing excess growth is a must when growing this kind of tree, because they grow quickly.
Now, here’s the fun part — finding an Osmanthus tree online is very easy. You can easily search for them with sites like Tree411 (search for Osmanthus for California), GardeningSearch, or UrbanHerb. Make a list of places you have that you enjoy visiting, and be sure to add the word ‘fordate’ to the end of the address. This is a form of public appeals for people to leave reviews — write a few about your experience visiting a particular place!
Growing Osmanthus is an abundant winter activity. It rewards the gardener with a fragrant, mildly sweet tree until late summer.
2. Requirements for growing Osmanthus trees and shrubs
You can grow Osmanthus trees and shrubs in USDA hardiness zones 4 through 9. Osmanthus trees grow to be about 25 feet tall and Osmanthus shrubs grow to be about 15 feet tall. The Osmanthus trees need full sun to partial shade and the Osmanthus shrubs need full sun to partial shade.Osmanthus is an evergreen shrub or tree that prefers a rich and humid environment. It prefers full sun to part shade so it’s not originally a good candidate for container gardening. It also doesn’t like cold temperatures so Osmanthus shrubs will do better in pots or stacked in a trellis.
Like some other conifers, Osmanthus tolerates high levels of cold. However, it doesn’t like cold temperatures below 30 F. For more information on how to light these plants, read our article on curing Your Shady Cures.
Like all conifers, trees, and shrubs, Osmanthus needs fertilization to help them grow. If you do a monthly watering procedure, ensure that the soil is completely moist. This plant also needs regular water in order to properly store and disperse its twigs and cones.
When the weather turns cold again, it’s best to maintain a moist environment by maintaining decent airflow in your container or pot. Mist the soil occasionally with water to open up the pores of the soil to allow more water to be absorbed by the plants. Remember, frequent watering is the key to keeping your Osmanthus happy.
Osmanthus can go several different stages and each stage has slightly differing requirements. The first three, deciduous, evergreen, and evergreen, require warmer temperatures and less direct sunlight to thrive. Meanwhile, short-lived annuals, such as creeping evergreen, need cooler temperatures and brighter sunlight to grow.
In addition to growing for the sake of looks, there are several edible uses for Osmanthus. While flowers are more ephemeral than other perennials, the leaves are nutritious and have a surprisingly high concentration of vitamin C. Because the leaves are evergreen, they’re a great addition to salads and drizzled over roasted popcorn for an extra dose of sweetness.
3. Tips for choosing the right location for Osmanthus in your garden
There are a few things you should take into consideration when choosing the right location for osmanthus in your garden. Osmanthus are very hardy and easy to maintain, but they do need at least six hours of sunlight a day and a certain amount of humidity in the air.If you give the plant good food and water, it'll thrive!
The ideal soil temperature for this tropical plant is 50–55 °F, with slow drainage. Fertilizer is required once a month, either the liquid or powder form. A two-week lockdown between applications is recommended as the plant gets too hot during the summer and can experience drying out.
Watering should be minimal, only when the soil dries out. Osmanthus prefers bright, indirect sunlight, but needs little if any light at all at night. If you plant indoors, consider window or greenhouse lights to simulate daytime hours. The plant is also quite sensitive to cold in the winter and needs periodic heating in the summer. When choosing an Osmanthus-loving room plant, place it somewhere with direct light.
Pruning is absolutely necessary to maintain both growth and color. We only advise pruning in early spring after the new growth has set out (it doesn’t burn if pruned too soon though). If the plant is repotted too soon, there can be stunted growth. And don’t be afraid to give it some gentle touch, plants appreciate the — rather drastic — changes in their environment!
Growing in the ground can be rewarding. Due to the Osmanthus’ versatility, it’s very common to find it planted in larger containers or stacked up in various shapes for city or patio use. The biggest problem with the ground is that it’s very acidic and will destroy whatever it touches. In addition, it’s often neglected in favor of the indoor version. However, if you choose to let it grow in the ground, there are a few things to keep in mind to help it thrive.
4. How to plant and care for an Osmanthus tree or shrub in your garden
Osmanthus or Chinese sweet olive is a small tree or shrub with fragrant flowers. It is native to southeast Asia and is now widely planted in the southern United States and California, where it is grown as an ornamental plant. Osmanthus grows best in USDA hardiness zones 8 and 9. It can survive temperatures as low as -10 degrees F.It prefers partial bright light and warm, slightly moist soil. It requires weekly watering, however, and is a cold-hardy plant. Protect the delicate flowers from wind and other elements.
Although Osmanthus can be grown from seed, it usually requires frost and dry conditions to thrive. Once established, it starts sending out usedy suckers that are awkward to cut due to their curved shape, so it’s best to cut the plant back if you want to keep it as a potted plant. Osmanthus is a slow grower and needs about four years to reach one foot in height. The second year after being rooted in water, it will send out long white axils from the stem. These often develop into foliage in late summer or early fall.
In colder climates, hard frost can kill off first- year plants. To save the young plant, harvest the axils at the first sign of frosts. Once harvested, remove the axils and put the entire plant into a covered pot. The next summer you can re-plant the seedlings.
Growing Osmanthus is quite easy. All you need are some leaves and a plant. You can start growing it from seed, but it is best to start from rooted cuttings taken from larger plants we found. Different parts of the plant send out different amounts of suckers so you won’t get all the suckers at once.
