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Florida Gardening

Osmanthus fragrans - Tea Olive, Fragrant Olive, Sw

15 years ago

Anyone have any experience, opinions about this plant?

Thanks

Michelle

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Comments (13)

leahrenee1
15 years ago
They smell great, I find mine to be easy to grow, it's nto the most beautiful shrub ever but I like it, and I like that mine seems to bloom in cooler weather.
gatormomx2
15 years ago
I love my tea olive . They prefer acidic soil .
Mine is not the prettiest thing but I still love it . I have it in part sun- part shade and mulched with pine fines . When it blooms , the tiny white flowers smell like nothing else .
They seem to do best in moist acidic soil .
They do not bloom in the heat of the summer but return to blooming at the temps cool .
Seems to be cold hardy and disease resistant . From the link below :
" This is a subtle plant which should be used more often in Southern landscapes."
Here is an outstanding link with all you need to know -

Here is a link that might be useful: Sweet Osmanthus
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This plant can be transplanted, although if it is over 6' tall you should have it moved by a professional. The root-ball could weigh from 500 to over well over 1000 pounds depending on the size of the tree. Generally, you have two options. Preferably to "hand-dig" which is very labor intensive but is better for the tree or move it with a tree-spade which requires specialized equipment and room to maneuver. First, spray paint a circle around the tree to mark the area for the root-ball. A deep trench should be dug around the tree being careful not to disturb the root-ball. Fill the trench with water. You can add a commercially available starter solution and/or Bioplex to the water if you like. Let the water soak in then fill the trench with mulch. Overwinter the tree in this state then move the tree in early Spring.
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Ahh...what great responses!! (hi Kat! *wavin*) I'm REALLY glad I have this plant, now! It happened that I have it - quite by accident. I was really looking for sweet almond (which I've since purchased) and asked for sweet olive, instead. DUH...but, it has bloomed and does smell grand - as does the sweet almond! We're going to dig up a penta that is near the patio and move that somewhere else...the sweet Olive will go there in it's place. We won't even see it right now because there is a drape of moonflower vines all across that end of the patio. I love all your descriptions and comments! Thanks.
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Hester, Try growing the Goshiki Variegated Holly Tea Olive, it is a very pretty evergreen shrub with cream, pink, orange, yellow, and white speckled variegated holly-like foliage. True to its name, 'Goshiki' means 'five-colored' in Japanese. This tough, sturdy shrub will brighten up any yard. Tiny white flowers are extremely fragrant and usually start blooming in late summer. Goshiki is a slow growing compact shrub that will grow best in partial shade. Plant near walkways, patios, or decks to enjoy the wonderful fragrance. I have one growing in a pot in my pool screen house and the aroma is amazing. Lou
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O. fragrans appears to be generally unsuited to local winters even in my part of USDA 8, with growing late into fall, resulting loss of most recent growth flushes some winters being seen. The Seattle arboretum does have an old, small (as in a few individuals) planting on a greasy clay bank that is supposed to be this species (and looks the part), seems to have been hardy. But it could be some kind of special wild collection* from a higher altitude or otherwise different in this respect (climate adaptation) from what has been on the market here. And maybe pretty much everywhere else in the US. Some species of shrubs are represented in cultivation primarily by tender forms that do not reflect the full range of the species. A prominent example is Camellia reticulata, with specimens of the typical wild plants having lived in Seattle plantings for decades. Whereas the old Chinese cultivars of that species brought back to the West from temple plantings turned out to be strictly for soft winter areas. Maybe there is a similar situation with the osmanthus. *Either I haven't thought to look this accession up in their planting records or I did and nothing illuminating was encountered
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an_ill-mannered_ache
15 years ago
sublime scent. nothing like it. something to stick in the back of a bed. it's such a fascinating plant--the fragrance comes and goes unpredictably. when someone smells it for the first time, their reaction is always sheer delight--it's an almost addictive smell.
gatormomx2
15 years ago
Couldn't agree more !
Well said .
wanna_run_faster
15 years ago
Anyone in Zone 10 with this plant?
coffeemom
15 years ago
yes
wanna_run_faster
15 years ago
Lol, Kristi...so how does it do for you?
coffeemom
15 years ago
It's a slow grower. I planted it last spring by the patio for the frangrance but it may want to be moved farther from the concrete. It's about the size of a small box store rose bush. It's a non fussy plant. I've ignored it all summer actually. I think it smells like apricot.I can't wait for it to bloom because then it will be COOLER!!!!!!
ventura43
15 years ago
I have two that are hanging on...I adore the scent, hubby can't smell them at all. Mine are very scrubby looking.

Last fall I was in New Orleans walking thru the French Quarter with a friend. We started smelling a glorious scent which I thought was tea olive. We rounded a corner and there was a stand of about 8 tea olives in tree form, about 10 feet high and loaded with blossoms. Shopkeepers were standing out on their stoops to enjoy the fragrance.

Nothing like it.
nutmeg234
15 years ago
I went to school in MS & there was a huge sweet olive bush/tree outside one of the class buildings. I will never forget that scent! I have been hoping to grow one ever since... I am looking for one now.
lakeron
15 years ago
nutmeg234 I finally found mine at Jane's in St. Pete, if that's not too far for you. www.tropicalfruit.com.
naplesgardener
15 years ago
I just saw some for sale at Kerby's in Seffner (near Tampa) for $17. They were about 4-5' tall in tree shape.
gatormomx2
15 years ago
Mine is blooming again and smells heavenly .
Been watering with brewed coffee and other acidic liquids whenever possible .
Tree seems to like it .
I read that they can get 25 feet tall .
They are very slow growers so I would guess 25 feet tall in a few decades ?
Mine is about 5 feet tall - got a ways to go !
A must have for every garden . Plant in an out of the way acidic place as they are not " pretty " tree/bushes .

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