How could you not love a plant that looks pristine and beautiful at this time of the year? That's how I found this Pittosporum tobira 'Variegata' last weekend.
Pittosporum tobira 'Variegata'
Ever since we've moved in to our house and started cultivating the garden we have considered putting in this shrub but somehow never managed to, always being edged out by other plants that are a bit more unusual than this one. Until we saw a beautiful specimen growing inside a glasshouse in Vienna, Austria the last time we visited. Winters in Vienna gets a lot colder than it is here so some plants that grow happily outside here are not hardy enough to grow there unless under heated glass. Quite unusual and was a bit surreal to see some 'staples' here growing in a glasshouse there, including this variegated Pittosporum but I'm glad we spotted their nice specimen which made us appreciate this plant even more.
So much so that when we got back home we immediately bought one from a nearby garden center and planted it out in the spring!
This plant is unfussy, undemanding, and reliable. That's how we find it anyway but it has a reputation for tolerating a wide range of conditions from full sun to dappled shade, acid to alkaline soil, even coastal conditions. It does prefer a sunny spot in moisture retentive soil.
The glossy, evergreen, variegated foliage glistens and seems to brighten up its own spot. And the plant can integrate well with different styles and planting schemes, from Japanese, jungle, to formal, and modern.
We join Loree of Danger Garden for her Favourite Plant of the Week meme!
Mark :-)
