Sarcococca hookeriana

Sarcococca hookeriana

Common name: sweet box

Buxaceae

Leaf: Lustrous, lanceolate, leathery, dark green leaves (to 3.5" long and to 0.75" wide), evergreen.

Flowers: Tiny, without petals, unisexual, tubular stamen or pistol structure, fragrant, white flowers (0.5" long) bloom in the leaf axils in March-April, pleasant fragrance

Fruit: showy, globose, shiny, black drapes

Height: 1-2'; Spread: 2-4'

Habit: broadleaf evergreen shrub, rhizomanous, low

Form: mounded

Culture: Grow in organic moist, acidic soil, in part shade to full shade (does best in full shade). Best with consistent moisture. Best to prune in spring after the flowering period to maintain shape. Will spread. USDA zones 6-8; though S. hookeriana var. humilis had a cold hardiness to -10 F.

Uses: Evergreen ground cover for woodland gardens with fragrant flowers and good, dense foliage. Good as a shrub borders. Shady parts of cottage gardens. Shady slopes (dense going habit makes it a successful specimen for slopes). Var. humilis is a nice lower version, growing only 1-2' tall.