John&Jacq~s Garden

Aucuba japonica has been given the Award of Garden Merit

Aucuba japonica (Spotted Laurel, Japanese Laurel, Japanese Aucuba, Gold Dust Plant)

Spotted Laurel or Japanese Aucuba is often grown for its variegated foliage.

Grow this beauty to enjoy its brilliantly coloured red berries that persist on the plant for a very long time.

The Royal Horticultural Society has given Aucuba japonica the Award of Garden Merit.

Plant Profile, Culture and Propagation :

• Botanical Name: Aucuba japonica (syn.: Aucuba luteocarpa).
• Common Names: Spotted Laurel, Japanese Laurel, Japanese Aucuba, Gold Dust Plant.
• Family name: Garryaceae.
• Etymology: The genus name Aucuba comes from the Latinized version of the Japanese name aukubi for these shrubs. The specific epithet japonica means native to Japan.
• Origin: Native to China and Japan.
  It’s cultivated elsewhere around the globe.
• Plant type: An evergreen and dioecious shrub.
• Features: Aucuba japonica is from the genus, Aucuba that comprises of 3-10 species of flowering plants.
  There are numerous cultivars available and the most popular cultivar is ‘Variegata’ with yellow spots on the leaves. Each leaf may be dotted with varying levels of golden-yellow.
  A slow-growing shrub that can reach between 1-5 m in height and generally forming into a rounded shape.
  Its medium to rich green leaves are opposite, leathery, glossy, elliptic to narrow-ovate, 8-25 cm long and 2-7 cm broad.
  They have coarse marginal teeth on the upper half of each leaf.
  Aucuba japonica are dioecious with male and female flowers on separate plants.
  Its flowers are small, 4-8 mm in diameter, each with four purple petals and sepals and creamy white anthers in beautiful contrastThey are produced in clusters of 10-30 in a loose cyme.
  Male flowers appear in upright terminal panicles or cymes to 11.43 cm long.
  On the other hand, female flowers appear in shorter clusters from the leaf axils.
  Pollinated female flowers are followed by ellipsoid, one-seeded, berry-like drupes, approximately 1.27 cm which ripen to red and are avoided by birds.
  Fruits often persist on the plant for a long time.

• Culture (Care): Aucuba japonica or Spotted Laurel grows easily with the least maintenance.
  Light: Full sun, partial shade to full shade.
  Moisture: Medium water requirement. Once established, the plant has very good drought tolerance.
  Soil: Humus-enriched, moist and well-drained soils.
  Others: Shrubs may be strictly pruned as hedges, left to grow unchecked or lightly trimmed to shape once annually, always using secateurs to avoid cutting the large leaves.
  Take not that this beauty is a poisonous plant, so should not be planted where children and pets are able to access it. Generally free from serious garden pests and diseases. However, do watch out for root rot that may occur in poorly-drained or overly-wet soils, fungal leaf spot, nematodes, scale, mealybugs, aphids, southern blight and spider mites.
  For subtropical and temperate regions: Hardiness: USDA Zone 7-9.
  Acuba japonica or Spotted Laurel grown in containers may be left outdoors year round in warm winter areas, brought indoors in winter in cold winter areas, or grown year round as houseplants. Container plants require consistent moisture when placed outside in summer with monthly applications of a liquid fertilizer, but should be given less water in winter. Indoor plants require a cool room with temperatures in the 10-18°C range. Its brilliantly coloured red stone fruits will be present from fall till winter.

• Propagation: Easily propagated by cuttings or from seeds. Take cuttings from both male and female plants and label them by sex in order to ensure that the female plants in a new planting will be pollinated by a nearby male for purposes of bearing fruit.

• Usage: Acuba japonica or Spotted Laurel is valued for its ability to thrive in the most difficult of garden environments. It also copes with pollution and salt-laden coastal winds. Grow it to beautify your garden with its showy flowers. It is often seen as an informal hedge or screen but may also be grown indoors as a houseplant for cool rooms.  Ideal to be grown in the ground or in tubs, planters and containers for patios and terraces.

Other External links:

• Wikipedia
• Missouri Botanical Garden
• The Spruce
• BBC Gardening

Tags: evergreen, foliage plants, green, indoor plants, outdoor plants, pink, purple, red, shrubs, variegated plants, yellow