I know as growers we are not meant to have favourites and, though I have many favourites, pittosporum is undoubtedly my ultimate shrub. They are planted all round our nursery and garden and it is always our go-to shrub when designing gardens, as they have so much to offer. They are easy to maintain, look good all year round and in the summer months, when they flower, they have the most wonderful honey-jasmine-like scent. The flowers are tiny and underneath the foliage, so they don’t detract in any way from the glorious and luxurious evergreen foliage.
Native to New Zealand, pittosporum are used to warm summers and cold, wet winters. They do prefer to be positioned in a sheltered spot out of cold winds, but they hold up well for us in South Lincolnshire and we are only six miles from the river Welland and 12 miles from the North Sea (as the crow flies), so we do have strong winds that whip through the nursery.
Pittosporum range in size from 50cm right up to 4m. They are a fast-growing shrub and will reach their mature height within 3-4 years. They are all evergreen but will drop around 10-20% of their leaves in the winter. The colours vary depending on variety – they can be pink, white, dark maroon-purple and the odd splash of yellow – but all have green leaves. The most recent introduction is ‘Bannow Bay’, which was bred in Ireland and the focal shrub used in our medal-winning display at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023.
These plants respond well to pruning and the best time to prune is around the end of June. They make a lovely informal hedge, are perfect for mixed borders or on the edges of woodland gardens and look equally at home in pots and containers. They are a great alternative to Buxus and are generally pest free. They are not hungry feeders, so we recommend a light feed once every six weeks with liquid seaweed. Take care not to overfeed. A good mulch in the spring will also improve plant health.
Florists love to use this for foliage in bouquets, which will last in a vase for around 2-3 weeks.