Many thanks!

Thanks for answering. Will it have a chance with heavy mulching around the base and wrapping? I can't winter it inside, my husband has fairly severe allergies.

The sweet olive is not just plant however. It has a heavenly fragrance, but for my family it's more emotional than that. It simply reminds my mother of home and she tears up when she smells it. I know it's a foolhardy thing to try to plant a sweet olive in SE PA, but try I will. Butterfly it may just be as you predicated that I will have to replant every spring, but the last few winters has been quite mild and I am thinking burlap with frames might bring it through. I have heard that proper wrapping can bring up a full zone, and as long as it doesn't completely die off, some damages I can deal with.

It will be an interesting experiment next year.. I will keep you guys posted.

I agree with all the advice above about problems keeping Osmanthus fragrans alive. I have tried twice with burlap, and I have a friend who has tried the sheltered area approach. We got leaf and twig damage in a mild winter, dead plants in a hard winter. You might have more luck than we did.

You can be more successful in SE PA with the many types of Osmanthus heterophyllus. The fall blooming Osmanthus does better for me than the spring bloomers. My Osmanthus heterophyllus 'Gulftide' is about 27 years old and never suffers winter damage except for broken branches in ice storms. I can say the same for my Osmanthus h. 'Sasaba' and Osmanthus armatus. The Osmanthus x fortunei sometimes has some winter burn but always lives through the cold weather. My Osmanthus h. 'Goshiki' is sheltered by some hollies, and so far it has had no problems, either. I usually read that Osmanthus is a slow grower, but these varieties have grown well for me.

The spring bloomers that I have are Osmanthus americanus and Osmanthus decorus 'Baki Kasapligil' -- they grow well enough, but the air is a little too cold in springtime to enjoy the fragrance outdoors. Same as Jeff_al's comment about his sweet box.

The major problem with the cold-hardy Osmanthus here is not growing it -- it is that the blooming season ends too soon. In October the fragrance is wonderful, but when the hard frost finally arrives, the season is over. We don't have that wonderful fragrance all winter long the way the people in mild climates do. But the shrubs are still evergreen and beautiful all year long.

I just bought this plant this year, and already put it in the ground. I assumed it would be ok in winter in central Arkansas, esp as it was sold in southern AR from a supplier to other nurseries. I can let you know how it does by next Spring. In the past 4 winters here (that's all I've been here) it's never been below 10 F. I have close family NE of Philadelphia, and they are maybe a month behind on blooming plants, but I didn't think they got below 5 F very often if at all. Perhaps it is the length of the cold snaps that will get the plant there rather than the actual low temp. Or, perhaps it will make it. Did give my family there a rooted gardenia from my huge outdoor gardenia and it didn't make it thru last winter, although there are reports of other gardenias growing outside there.

From what I've seen on Dave's Garden plant files, and what I know about NE of Phila, you may as well give it a shot. It might also depend on what suburb of Phila you live as to how long it stays below freezing. To give it extra help, don't plant it in a low spot where cold air gathers; plant on a slope or above the lowest spot. Mulch well for winter. Let us know how it does.

Good luck.

O. fragrans is one of my all-time faves, and I, too, would go to great lengths to keep it alive. The hard part is its blooming season is at its peak fall through spring, when you really want it at its best rather than struggling for life under a blanket.

You can buy small 'cold frame' type greenhouses for a couple hundred bucks -- a serious investment, but I'm afraid even in a micro-climate up next to the house, it'll be too much of a gamble even to avoid frost damage to the flowers. Growing under glass, even without suplemental heat, may be the best way to keep it alive and flowering.

The only other thing I can think of is overwintering in a garage with artificial lights -- unless your husband uses the garage for working?

Winters can be very different in different parts of the country, even though their cold zones are the same. You can try and keep it protected outside, but one or more backup approaches may save you from too much heartbreak!

Jim

We are in the NW suburbs of Phila, around the King of Prussia area. The climate should be very similiar to your family in NE Phila.

Have you tried to grow a sweet olive in New York yet?

Thanks for the suggestion of the coldframe/mini greenhouse idea. I think I will try without that first and see how it goes. One little secret up my sleeve is that I have a covered lower deck that has a very sunny side. There is also a hot tub installed in deck. I am think planting the sweet olive right next to the hot tub by the deck in full sun might do the trick. Of course, it means that I will have to run the hot tub all winter long, but we usually keep it going for a good part of the winter anyhow.

You are making me envious. Where do you buy your many species of Osmanthus from? Just as butterfly4u said, local nurseries don't carry them (at least I haven't found one yet) since it's not cold hardy. It's looking like I'll have to mail order.

I've grown one or two straight o. fragrans, and my current love is o. fragrans 'Fudinzhou' from the South Carolina nursery woodlanders. Fabulous, blooms all year except the height of summer, very fragrant, I couldn't live without it.

And because I can't, I drag it indoors and baby it through the winter in a corner of the bedroom with a shaded west facing sliding door, plant lights, fans, etc. Don't shower me with pity for my pain, it's all worth it!

Some other folks around here (Longriver, are you around?) have been active in introducing newer cultivars of o. fragrans from China -- my understanding is that there's a lot of variants grown over there that haven't made it to N. America yet. FWIW, if you're going to mail order, spend the extra $$ to buy a plant that's in a quart size container or larger; osmanthus don't grow quickly, and why wait years coaxing a baby plant to bloom?

A covered sun porch with a hot tub and an osmanthus? When's the party? ;>)
Actually, that sounds like a great place to try to plant -- is it glassed in, or just roofed over? Either way, the extra protection will help even without the tub heated; just don't bring it in with you. If it is in the ground, you'll probably still need to wrap it up on cold nights, but we'll see what mother nature brings this winter.

Good luck!

Jim

Anyhow, it is also wonderful to have a potted plant so you can enjoy it in winter. I think I'll need to get a Fudinzhou some time.

Happy gardening

Changsong

Gulftide is the easiest to find locally. By the way, Longwood Gardens near you is using Gulftide quite a bit now for hedges and background shrubbery in shady areas. Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, DC, has also used it to replace boxwood.

I live in PA and yes they do sell the osmanthus here in Chinatown for $20. I didn't purchase it becaue I wanted a yellow one. So I went and ordered from nurcar. Ordered the fudingzhu and yellow variety. Heard the fudingzhu bloom a couple times a year. Anyone have any pictures to share? Thanks