Aucuba - Gold-Dust Tree

(Aucu'ba)

DESCRIPTION: This group consists of three, evergreen shrubs that are natives of eastern Asia and the Himalayas. These shrubs are compact and rounded, growing from 6 to 10 feet high. They are mainly grown for their attractive foliage, which is especially pretty on the variegated types. They produce small flowers, often unnoticeable, that are followed by bunches of red berries, each containing a single seed. Male and female flowers are produced on different plants. They are nice plants to grow in cool rooms and sunny porches and in large pots or tubs on the terrace. You can plant them underneath trees where most plants won't survive because they are shade loving shrubs. A. japonica (Japanese Aucuba) is a medium-sized shrub with glossy, green leaves. In mid-spring, small, reddish-purple flowers are borne; the males having noticeable, white anthers. A. japonica var. Variegata (Gold Dust Plant) is a medium-sized shrub with attractive green leaves that are heavily speckled with yellow. A. japonica var. Rozannie is a medium-sized shrub with wide, dark green leaves that are serrated above the center. It produces an abundance of large, red berries.

POTTING: Aucubas should be planted in the fall or spring in any ordinary soil. From spring through fall, they should be given plenty of water, but kept drier in the winter. Young plants naturally grow into shapely bushes, but overgrown plants can be pruned back in the spring.

PROPAGATION: Terminal shoots, with two or three side branches, can be placed in a propagating case in a greenhouse that has a temperature of 60º F, in the spring or summer. They'll form roots in a few weeks and can then be planted outside. Similar cuttings will also form roots in August in a cold frame, or even outside. Seeds can be planted in pots of sandy soil in a greenhouse that has a temperature of 50º-55º F. The outer, fleshy pulp should be cleaned off first, as soon as they are ripe. New plants can sometimes be produced by layering branches in the spring. Large shrubs can be divided in September. Since cuttings work quite well, though, it's unnecessary to use any other way to propagate.

VARIETIES: A. japonica & var. Crotonifolia, Gold Dust, Golden King, Hillieri, Lance Leaf, Longifolia, Maculata, Marmorata, Nana Rotundifolia, Variegata, Picturata, Rozannie, Salicifolia, Sulphurea Marginata.

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