#TeachingTuesday: Cephalotaxus, Japanese Plum Yew

Cephalotaxus harringtonia ‘Pedunculata’
Photo credit: Maryann Debski
JCRA Photo Collection

Today our crews reviewed an interesting evergreen shrub, Cephalotaxus harringtonia, or the Japanese plum yew. Although it has a similar name and similar appearance, it is not the same thing as true yews, which are in the Taxus genus. These shrubs are much more tolerant of the hot, humid summers of the south than the English and Japanese Taxus species. They are also shade tolerant and deer resistant, so all they really need is some protection from drying winter winds and a well-drained site.

Japanese plum yews are highly valued for their deep green evergreen foliage and slow growth rate, meaning they are very low maintenance. It’s hard to name another evergreen shrub so versatile. Their graceful arching branches need not be pruned much at all, and there are several cultivars that exhibit specific growth habits for different applications, such as ‘Prostrata’ for a low, spreading shrub or ‘Fastigiata’ for an upright columnar shrub, great for low- to medium-height hedges. ‘Duke Gardens’ is another well-known cultivar, developed right here in NC at Sarah P. Duke Gardens in Durham (420 Anderson St, Durham, NC 27708). You can see the original plants in the Terraces above the koi pond. To see a collection of several different types of Cephalotaxus, visit the JC Raulston Arboretum at NC State (4415 Beryl Rd, Raleigh, NC 27606).

ID Tips

The leaves are long, flat, and linear with pointed tips, arranged spirally around the stems, in two planes, forming a distinct V-shaped trough.
On C. harringtonia ‘Fastigiata,’ rather than appearing in two flat planes, the leaves along the stem will show a bottlebrush effect, and will start small, and gradually get larger, then become small again and repeat.
On the underside of the leaves, there are two grayish bands.
These shrubs do not produce cones, but rather “arils” which are naked seeds, an evolutionary step between cones and actual fruit. There is a fleshy covering over the seed that is open at the bottom, and is shaped somewhat like an olive and is brown to reddish brown in color.
The arils and leaves are toxic if ingested, but are safe to handle.

C. harr. ‘Fastigiata’ – Note the even bottlebrush distribution of leaves around the stem
Note the gray stripes on the underside of the leaves – this is common to all Cephalotaxus and some other species
Upright nature of C. harr. ‘Fastigiata’
C. harringtonia – Note the pinched effect of smaller and larger leaves
Compare the flat plane of the foliage to the bottlebrush habit of C. harr. ‘Fastigiata’ above
Much more spreading habit than C. harr. ‘Fastigiata’
Arils on C. harringtonia look like fruit, but are actually just open seeds with a fleshy covering.
Photo credit: Maryann Debski
JCRA Photo Collection

Cephalotaxus harringtonia ‘Duke Gardens’
Photo credit: Mark Weathington
JCRA Photo Collection

#TeachingTuesday: Muhly Grass

Because of the short weeks we had due to rain and the Thanksgiving holiday, today we had our first new plant for plant identification training in 3 weeks! Last week, the crews reviewed the plants they learned in November: Carex ‘Evergold’, Chinese pistache, and tea olive.

20181204_091816 — The Myatt Landscaping office is ready for the holidays!

Pink muhly grass, or Muhlenbergia capillaris, is one of my top favorite plants. Best grouped in masses, this ornamental native grass blooms in fall creating the effect of fluffy, pink clouds. These grasses can add ethereal beauty to the home garden perennial border, or a stunning display of fall color in public parks and along highways in mass plantings. In late fall, the pink flowers develop into gray-purple seeds, which are eaten by birds and small mammals. The seedheads then fade to a light buff color, and retain their attractiveness until spring, adding texture and movement to the winter landscape. They thrive in full sun, and are tolerant of heat, humidity, drought, poor soil, and are also highly tolerant of salt and deer! These grasses do well in every part of NC as long as they are not planted in shady or wet areas.

muhlenbergia_capillaris_02_ATTRIBUTE — *Muhlenbergia capillaris* (Photo credit: Mark Turner)

Although the most widely accepted common name is pink muhly grass, more recently it is being referred to as simply “muhly grass,” because of a white-flowered variant developed in the early 2000’s, Muhlenbergia capillaris ‘White Cloud.’ White Cloud muhly grass is a bit more upright than the species.

20181204_092015 — Muhlenbergia ‘White Cloud’ in the plant holding area at our office.

Maintenance Tips

Both pink and white muhly grass are very low maintenance. They typically do not need to be cut back the first year after they are planted, but may need to be cut back or thinned in early spring after they are well established. This will help ensure that they have enough air circulation, which will protect against disease.

c8e43b2751b8f23c926559a3a009d23e — Muhly grass in winter (Photo credit: JC Raulston Arboretum)

ID Tips

The leaves are dark green, thin, and wiry, and grow in a neat, rounded clump. There aren’t many other grasses that look similar. There are many species of Muhlenbergia, but M. capillaris is the most commonly available one.
The blooms are unmistakable–panicles (clusters) of pink to deep rose hair-like filaments.

Muhlenbergia_capillaris800a

#TeachingTuesday: Tea Olive

Today for #TeachingTuesday, we will cover two species of tea olive: Osmanthus fragrans and Osmanthus x fortunei. Tea olive is also known as false holly, or simply ‘osmanthus.’ Personally, tea olive is one of my all-time favorite shrubs. I have fond memories of walking across the NC State campus in late October and smelling that sweet, sweet fragrance, then looking around trying to find the large shrub it was coming from (sometimes more than 50 feet away!). Plant these evergreen shrubs near windows, porches, and outdoor living areas to enjoy the enchanting scent through the fall. The shrubs/small trees are long-lived and virtually free of pests and diseases.

Osmanthus fragrans – Fragrant Tea Olive

The fragrant tea olive is, unsurprisingly, the most fragrant Osmanthus species. However, it is also the least cold hardy, and is only marginally successful in zone 8 (it prefers zones 9-11). For reference, Raleigh-Durham is zone 7b/8a, Wilmington is zone 8a, and Charleston, SC is zone 8b/9a. We see it more on coastal properties, but it can also be grown as a container plant, or in sheltered locations with winter protection.

There is also an orange-flowered form, Osmanthus fragrans f. aurantiacus, which is slightly more cold-tolerant than the species.

1200px-Osmanthus_fragrans_(orange_flowers)

Osmanthus x fortunei – Fortune’s Tea Olive

Fortune’s osmanthus, or Fortune’s tea olive, is the most common species used in our area. It is a hybrid between Osmanthus fragrans and Osmanthus heterophyllus (false holly). Like its parent, it has small, white, highly fragrant flowers, and blooms in October-November, but is much more cold-hardy, surviving throughout zone 7. It has been around in the western horticultural trade since 1856, when it was introduced to Britain from Japan.

Fortune’s tea olive can be grown as a shrub, a small- to medium-sized tree, or even a hedge. Its spiny leaves make it very resistant to deer damage, and it is also drought tolerant, and somewhat tolerant to shade and salt.

3280043402_70ed0c2c33_b — A large screen of *Osmanthus* x *fortunei*

ID Tips

Although at first glance many tea olive species may look similar to hollies, there is an easy trick to tell the difference: tea olive leaves are always in opposite pairs, while holly leaves alternate along the stem.
Fragrant tea olive leaves are slightly larger and longer than Fortune’s tea olive leaves, and will have either entire margins (meaning smooth edges) or dentate margins (meaning finely toothed edges). The tip of the leaf is not spiny.
Fortune’s tea olive leaves are smaller and more oval-shaped, and will have a spiny tip at the point of each leaf. There are three kinds of leaves on Fortune’s tea olive: the juvenile leaves (leaves near the base of the plant), which will have 10-12 triangular, spiny teeth on each side (the younger, the spinier). The mature leaves, which are found on the upper branches of the shrub/tree, will have smooth edges, but will still have the spiny point at the tip. In the middle, there will be leaves that have a few spines near the tip of the leaf, but smooth edges near the base.

Do you have more tips for identifying tea olives? Leave a comment!

20181113_110026 — All *Osmanthus* species have leaves in opposite pairs.

20181113_110512 — Note the spines disappearing toward the base.

20181113_105829 — Individual flowers are very small, but very fragrant!

#TeachingTuesday: Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’

Today our plant of the week is the Evergold sedge, Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold.’ We use this plant extensively in our fall & winter planter designs because the striking foliage holds up well in the cold weather. It is also used in perennial shade gardens, where grasses typically can’t grow because there isn’t enough light. Sedges are more tolerant of low light and wet soil conditions than grasses are, and can add nice texture and, in the case of Evergold and other variegated sedges, a pop of brightness. They are also deer resistant, which is good news for shade gardeners–combine sedges with heuchera (our plant of the week from last Tuesday) and you will have a good start to a deer resistant garden.

Maintenance Tips

In our area, zone 7b/8a, Evergold sedge is typically evergreen, but may be affected by prolonged periods of cold, dry, windy weather, which may cause it to develop brown tips. Make sure to keep plants watered in the winter to help prevent this. Because Carex oshimensis ‘Evergold’ is somewhat slow-growing, it typically should not be cut back in the winter, especially if being used in a winter container garden. If there is severe browning due to cold weather, wait until springtime and cut back the foliage just as the new growth is starting to emerge.

ID Tips

At first glance, the leaves of Evergold sedge and variegated liriope (Liriope muscari ‘Variegata’) may look similar, both with creamy stripes along the length of the leaves, a clumping habit, and a similar height of about 12″. Liriope is a fast grower, and should be cut back in the late winter/early spring, so make sure you learn these tips so you can tell the difference and cut back only the correct plants!

The leaves of Evergold sedge are creased along the center, causing a ‘V’ shape when cut in cross-section. Liriope leaves are flat and strap-like.
Evergold sedge has a single cream-colored stripe running down the center of each leaf, while Liriope muscari ‘Variegata’ leaves have a green center with cream colored margins along the edges.
Evergold sedge leaves taper gradually to a very long, thin, wiry point which sometimes curls, while liriope leaves have blunt, rounded tips.
If you can remember what the flowers looked like back in the summer, sedges have small, brown, tufty seedheads, similar to what you would see on an ornamental grass, while liriope has clusters of tiny, purple flowers that are quite attractive.
Liriope may develop stalks of black berries that persist into the fall and winter, which you would never see on a sedge. But, these may not still be present when it’s time to cut back liriope foliage in the spring, so don’t rely on this tip by itself!

There are many other variegated sedges, grasses, and other grassy plants like liriope. The more you see and learn, the easier it will be to tell them apart!

carex leaf tips — Long, thin, wiry tips of Evergold sedge

liriope leaf tips — Blunt, rounded tips of variegated liriope