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Ternstroemia gymnanthera (COPPER CROWN™)

Image of Ternstroemia gymnanthera 'Grewad' (COPPER CROWN™) PP10521

Family

Theaceae

Botanical Name

Ternstroemia gymnanthera 'Grewad'(COPPER CROWN™) PP10521

Plant Common Name

Cleyera , Japanese Ternstroemia, Sakaki

General Description

Cleyera is an elegant, tough, and shade-tolerant broadleaf evergreen from Northeast Asia. Copper Crown™ was selected for its colorful spring, fall, and winter foliage and its relatively compact uniform habit. Dense and rounded when young, it matures into an upright multi-trunked medium-sized to large shrub with handsome gray bark.

Whorls of glossy elliptic leaves cover this cleyera all year around. Red-bronze upon emergence, they deepen to glossy olive-green in summer. In fall and winter they take on shades of burnished burgundy and bronze. Small, fragrant, creamy-white flowers appear on the previous year's wood in late spring and early summer. The five-petaled, nodding blooms give rise to attractive small, fleshy, inedible fruits that are yellow-green maturing to bright red. These showy cherry-like fruits ripen in fall and persist through winter.

This handsome shrub excels in partial shade and sandy, fertile, acid soil, although it will tolerate slightly alkaline soils and some clay. This is an exceptionally pest- and disease-free plant that looks great either pruned or left to its own devices. Often associated with Japanese gardens, cleyera is ideal for screening, large hedges or foundations, and is pretty enough to plant as a specimen. It also works well as an outdoor or indoor container plant.

Characteristics

  • AHS Heat Zone

    10 - 1

  • USDA Hardiness Zone

    7 - 10

  • Sunset Zone

    4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

  • Plant Type

    Broadleaf Evergreen

  • Sun Exposure

    Partial Sun, Partial Shade, Full Shade

  • Height

    8'-10' / 2.4m - 3.0m

  • Width

    5'-6' / 1.5m - 1.8m

  • Bloom Time

    Late Spring, Early Summer

  • Native To

    Eastern Asia, China, Japan, Korea

Growing Conditions

  • Soil pH

    Acidic, Neutral

  • Soil Drainage

    Well Drained

  • Soil type

    Clay, Loam, Sand

  • Tolerances

    Drought, Salt

  • Growth Rate

    Slow

  • Water Requirements

    Average Water

  • Habit

    Oval/Rounded

  • Seasonal Interest

    Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

Ornamental Features

  • Flower Interest

    Insignificant

  • Flower Color

    White, Yellow

  • Fruit Color

    Yellow, Red

  • Foliage Color (Spring)

    Red, Green, Burgundy, Copper, Bronze

  • Foliage Color (Summer)

    Olive

  • Foliage Color (Fall)

    Olive, Bronze

  • Foliage Color (Winter)

    Green, Dark Green, Burgundy, Copper, Bronze

  • Bark Color

    Brown, Gray

  • Fragrant Flowers

    Yes

  • Fragrant Fruit

    No

  • Fragrant Foliage

    No

  • Bark or Stem Fragrant

    No

  • Flower Petal Number

    Single

  • Repeat Bloomer

    No

  • Showy Fruit

    Yes

  • Edible Fruit

    No

  • Showy Foliage

    Yes

  • Foliage Texture

    Medium

  • Foliage Sheen

    Glossy

  • Evergreen

    Yes

  • Showy Bark

    No

Special Characteristics

  • Bark Texture

    Smooth

  • Usage

    Container, Feature Plant, Foundation, Hedges, Houseplant, Mixed Border, Screening / Wind Break, Topiary / Bonsai / Espalier

  • Sharp or Has Thorns

    No

  • Invasive

    No

  • Attracts

    Birds

  • Self-Sowing

    No