Osmanthus × fortunei 'SAN JOSE' Fortune's osmanthus, sweet olive
Osmanthus
Osmanthus is a genus of only about 15-20 evergreen species and varieties, and a genus which I fell in love with the first time I saw a few plants of. Their leathery and sometimes spiny leaves resemble hollies but osmanthus plants have something extra which gave them their name derived from Greek: osme = fragrance and anthos = flower. Osmanthus has tiny but highly fragrant flowers. I was an amateur when I bought the first plants and I had no idea that in all encyclopedias they were rated too tender for our C.E. climate. And since I never knew I put them to my garden. And after some 15 years of growing I can assure you that all of them not only survived even the worst winter of 2006/2007, they thrive and some of them are taller than me and I am very close to 2m. Including the most tender one o.fragrans. I keep on trialing more species and varieties because I noticed that they have some genetic predisposition for extreme drought tolerance in summer and some are even happy with dry soil in winter. And with current lack of precipitation we will need more of drought tolerant plants.
Fortune's osmanthus is a cross between o.heterophyllus (small, spiny leaves) and o.fragrans (large, entire leaves). It was first brought from Japan to Europe to Holland Philipp Franz von Siebold in 1856. Over the years its name has developed from osmanthus aquifolium to o.aquifolium var.latifolius to currently accepted and preferred name osmanthus x fortunei in honour of Scottish botanist Robert Fortune, and including the "x" making sure it is a hybrid.
San Jose is a Fortune's osmanthus variety developed by an influential American breeder Walter Bosworth Clarke in his nursery in San Jose, California, and introduced in 1941. It is a mid-sized shrub or a small multistemmed tree with leathery, deep green, and glossy leaves with serrated rather than spiny margins. From mid-autumn open tiny but very fragrant, pale beige flowers whose strong and sweet scent recalls apricots and tangerines. The fragrance is released mostly in the afternoon and in warm and sunny days of late autumn the shrub can fill a small garden with its enchanting scent.
It grows moderately into an upright, well-branched shrub whose mature size of about 3-4 meters can be expected in 40-50 years in C.E. conditions. Still, it can easily be controlled by pruning since osmanthus respond well to pruning and bush out reliably (much better than hollies). Spring pruning will enhance production of new twigs, summer trimming/clipping is good for shaping.
Grow osmanthus in well-drained, never water-logged, humus rich, preferably acidic soil. It loves full sun but in colder regions find it a location hidden from late winter and early spring sunlight but with plenty of light during the growing season. Having said that, we tested it in many locations of the Czech Republic and it seems reliable just like large-leaved green hollies without an extra fuss. Just make sure to transplant slightly larger plants if growing in zone 6 in order to avoid frost damage after the first winter(s). It is perfectly hardy to -20°C without damage, and is expected to withstand -24°C (USDA zone 6). Once established, it is reliably drought-tolerant and does not require winter watering like many other evergreen shrubs.
Last update 04-11-2024
