| Common Name: |
Goshiki Variegated Holly Olive |
| Scientific Name: |
Osmanthus heterophyllus 'Goshiki' |
| Other Name(s): |
Aka Variegated False Holly, Variegated Sweet Olive |
| Category: |
Shrub |
| Habit: |
Evergreen |
| Flower Description: |
Tiny fragrant 4-petaled white flowers bloom from the leaf axils in small clusters in fall. Plants are dioecious (male and female flowers on separate plants) |
| Bloom Color: |
White to pale yellow |
| Bloom Size: |
Under 1 in. |
| Bloom Season: |
Late spring or early summer |
| Fruit Description: |
Fruits (5/8 in. long) on female plants ripen in the year after flowering, but are usually not produced in cultivation |
| Fragrance: |
Fragrant |
| Foliage Description: |
Unusual foliage color; produces leathery, ovate to elliptic, deep green leaves (to 2 1/2 in long) which vary in shape: juvenile leaves typically have holly-like spiny margins (often 3-5 spiny teeth per side with a single tooth at the apex) and adult leaves typically are entire. The amount of toothing per leaf often varies considerably on the same shrub. Although the spiny juvenile leaves resemble the leaves of some hollies, holly olive leaves are opposite and holly leaves are alternate |
| Height of Plant: |
3-5 ft. |
| Spread of Plant: |
4 ft. |
| Hardiness: |
USDA Zones 7 - 9; if grown in Zone 6, it should be sited in a protected location with a winter mulch |
| Light Requirements: |
Full sun to partial Shade |
| Water Usage: |
Medium; drought tolerant once established |
| Soil Type: |
Best grown in rich, consistently moist, well-drained garden soils; tolerates heavy clays |
| Native Range: |
Japan and Taiwan |
| Usage: |
Where winter hardy, holly olive forms an excellent screen or hedge or shrub border |
| Propagation: |
Self fertile |
| Other Information: |
Plants are dioecious (male and female flowers on separate plants) |
| Photographer: |
Richard Buggeln |
| Location: |
Japanese Garden |