Other Names:  S. humilis x hookeriana

Description:

This attractive compact shrub presents large, deep green glossy foliage and sweetly fragrant white blooms in winter; flowering is followed by red berries that turn black over summer and persist into fall

Ornamental Features

Winter Gem Sweet Box is primarily grown for its highly ornamental fruit. It features an abundance of magnificent red berries from early summer to late fall, which fade to black over time. It has attractive dark green evergreen foliage which emerges light green in spring. The large glossy narrow leaves are highly ornamental and remain dark green throughout the winter. It features dainty clusters of fragrant white flowers along the branches from mid to late winter, which emerge from distinctive dark red flower buds.

Landscape Attributes

Winter Gem Sweet Box is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a mounded form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Winter Gem Sweet Box is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Winter Gem Sweet Box will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. It has a low canopy. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.

This shrub does best in partial shade to shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. This plant should not require much in the way of fertilizing once established, although it may appreciate a shot of general-purpose fertilizer from time to time early in the growing season. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Winter Gem Sweet Box makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.