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Sarcococca indoors?
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Posted by ispahan 6a Chicago (My Page) on Fri, Nov 13, 09 at 20:24
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Has anyone ever tried growing Sarcococca indoors? I am wondering if I could get it to produce flowers indoors or if it would need colder temperatures than I can provide. I can't really find any references of people growing it indoors, but from what I read about it, it looks like it might be an ideal houseplant candidate.
I am thinking of using the plant as a possible substitute for the sweet olive (Osmanthus fragrans), but I am not sure if it would be more trouble than it is worth.
Any thoughts or comments on this?
Thanks,
Ispahan
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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- Posted by jimshy z7 Brooklyn, NY (My Page) on
Sun, Nov 15, 09 at 10:33
| Hmmm, Don't know why this hasn't been tried before! A quick look at zones suggests that some of the dwarf sweetbox species can live happily in zone 9, so they don't need huge amounts of cold to bloom and be happy, they're related to boxwood, which is grown indoors and used for bonsai, so why not? I would guess that some chilling, particularly at night, would help set buds -- any way you can keep it up against a shady window opened a crack, or do you have a drafty hallway? My only objection is that there "is" no substitute for sweet olive, speaking personally, I think you should grow both! Jim |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| Point well taken, Jim. I should have been more specific. I was thinking of a dwarf sarcococca (like S. hookeriana) since my space does not allow me to accomodate a large osmanthus at this time. I agree that there is no substitute for the amazing perfume of Osmanthus fragrans. It seems like sarcococca should do well indoors, especially since it is advertised as liking "dry shade" outdoors. This seems like it might be an interesting experiment. |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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The first time I encountered a sarcococca was around 1975. There was a florist/greenhouse in my neighborhood that propagated Sarcococca confusa or ruscifolia (didn't know the difference then) and sold it as a foliage plant. I remember asking one of the staff about the flowers; the plants were budded but not blooming. He said he'd never noticed flowers on them before, and that buds were all they seemed to produce. That suggests to me that the minimum winter temperatures would have to be below 60 F for some period for that species. Since hookeriana humilis is much hardier than confusa/ruscifolia, it might want even more chilling. What I do is "force" h. humilis into bloom by keeping some potted plants outside through December, moving them into the garage if temps lower than the teens are forcast, and then bringing them into a cool room during the first mild spell in January. The flowers open in a few days, and when the fragrance begins to fade, out to the garage they go so they don't start growing in the house. That's enough to tide me over until February, when I go to the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in Seattle. Sarcococcas are always going full throttle over there then. I have to wait until early March (at least) for my garden plants to start blooming.
If you have access to inexpensive plants, give it a go indoors. Sarcococca hookeriana humilis is becoming much easier to find; even Home Depot sells it in the Spokane area. |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| By the way...to answer your question about whether or not it's worth the trouble to even try sarcococca indoors, do this. Get some French vanilla ice cream, some honey, and some cardamom (a spice best purchased whole rather than ground). Scoop some of the ice cream into a bowl, drizzle with a goodly amount of honey, and dust liberally with freshly ground cardamom. Take a bite. THAT is what sarcococca SMELLS like. |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| Oh wow, Michaell. What a fantastic description of the scent! I think you have just convinced me to give it a go. I had already planned on leaving out the plant for as long as possible in the autumn to bask in the cool temperatures, so I am glad you mentioned that. I figure that the worse that could happen is that I get few or no flowers if the plant is unhappy, but I would still have an attractive foliage plant. Those dark green, shiny leaves sure do beat a philodendron any day of the week! |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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- Posted by daxin z9 Bay Area (My Page) on
Tue, Nov 17, 09 at 1:23
| To me, Sarcococca is not worth the trouble for its fragrance. But since fragrance is so personal, maybe you should try the cardamom-honey-ice cream first, or better yet test smell sarcococca at your local botanical garden before you commit. As for your origial interest, Osmanthus fragrans takes pot culture very well. I've seen 40+ year old specimens in half-barrels in Northern China. These plants are pruned to stay under six feet and the trunks can get over 5" in diameter. They are overwintered in greenhouses and can be seen in almost all parks during fall season. |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| Well, I decided to take a risk after all and order a Sarcococca. After researching my options, I ordered S. orientalis from Wilkerson Mill and I just received my plant today. Since this species has an earlier bloom season than most, the plant I received (a very robust, well-formed specimen by the way) arrived with dozens upon dozens of fully mature buds, a few of which are already open. When I first took the plant out of the box, I smelled nothing. But after the plant warmed up for a few minutes, it began to waft a very sweet, vanilla/jasmine fragrance. The scent almost reminds me of a lighter but even more pervasive version of murraya. I can't imagine what my little specimen is going to smell like when all of the buds are open. Now to see how the plant performs indoors over the winter and if I will ever to be able to get it to rebloom in the future. One of the reasons I chose S. orientalis was for its wonderful, dark green glossy foliage and compact rounded growth habit in case it needs to be only a foliage plant in my conditions. |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| What is a Sarcococca plant? I went to Wlkerson Mill website, typed in Sarcococca, but the search said, No product found. It sounds interesting..toni |
RE: Sarcococca indoors?
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| Hopefulauthor, you need to search Wilkerson Mill's site using common names only. For some reason, their search engine does not recognize botanical names. Try typing in "sweet box" or either one of those words and you should see the sarcococca they have for sale. You can also try googling Sarcococca for a wealth of information about the different species and forms available. |
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