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Plant Profile

Pittosporum tobira (Japanese Pittosporum, Japanese Cheese Wood)

Pittosporum is an evergreen shrub with fragrant creamy-white flowers grouped in clusters that bloom from April to June. It grows well in all types of soil, even in dry and sandy soils, and it is one of the most salt resistant shrubs. The plant can tolerate urban pollution and has been a popular shrub in the Mediterranean coast, often used in landscaping as hedges and screens in patios, balconies, and also in troughs outside restaurants and shops.

  • Landscape Information
  • Botanical Description
  • Horticulture Management
  • By Dalgial (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
  • By Kurt Stüber [1] [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

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  • French Name: Pittospore du Japon

    Pronunciation: pit-tuss-SPOR-rum toe-BYE-ruh

  • Plant type: Shrub

  • Origin: Japan, china

  • Heat Zones: 8 to 12

    Hardiness Zones: 8 to 11

  • Uses: Screen, Hedge, Container, Wildlife, Pollution Tolerant / Urban

  • Size/Shape

    Growth Rate: Moderate

    Tree Shape: Vase

    Canopy Symmetry: Symmetrical

    Canopy Density: Dense

    Canopy Texture: Medium

    Height at Maturity: 1.5 to 3 m

    Spread at Maturity: 1.5 to 3 meters

    Time to Ultimate Height: 20 to 50 Years

  • Notes

     It requires frequent pruning (only after blooming) but growth slows down with age.

  • By Dalgial (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
  • By Kurt Stüber [1] [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

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  • Foliage

    Leaf Arrangement : Alternate

    Leaf Venation: Pinnate

    Leaf Persistance: Evergreen

    Leaf Type: Simple

    Leaf Blade: 5 - 10 cm

    Leaf Shape: Obovate

    Leaf Margins: Entire

    Leaf Texture: Leathery

    Leaf Scent: Unpleasant

    Color(growing season): Green

    Color(changing season): Green

  • Flower

    Flower Showiness: Yes

    Flower Scent: Pleasant

    Flower Color: White

    Seasons: Spring

  • Trunk

    Trunk Susceptibility to Breakage: Generally resists breakage

    Number of Trunks: Multi-Trunked

  • Fruit

    Fruit Showiness: No

    Fruit Size Range: 0 - 1.5

    Fruit Color: Green

    Seasons: Spring

  • By Dalgial (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
  • By Kurt Stüber [1] [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

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  • Tolerance

    Frost Tolerant: Yes

    Heat Tolerance: Yes

    Drought Tolerance: Yes

    Salt Tolerance: Moderate

  • Requirements

    Soil Requirements: Loam, Sand

    Soil Ph Requirements: Acidic, Neutral, Alkaline

    Water Requirements: Moderate

    Light Requirements: Full, Part

  • Management

    Invasive Potential: Yes

    Susceptibility to Pests and Diseases: No

    Pruning Requirements: Needed, to develop a strong structure

    Fruit/ Leaves/ Flowers litter: No

    Surface Rooting: No

    Life Span: 25-50 years

    Diseases: Powdery Mildew

    Pests: Scales, Aphids

    Plant Propagation: Seed, Cutting

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