Skip to site navigation

Styrax japonicus

Home  |  Plants > Plant Selector > Styrax japonicus

© RHS 1998

Characteristics

Plant type

Tree

Habit

Bushy

Fragrance

Flower

Resilience

Hardiness

old H4 (hardy)

Colour

Flower

White in Summer

Foliage

Green in Spring and Summer
Orange and Yellow in Autumn

Fruit

Green in Autumn

Size

Ultimate height

8-12 metres

Ultimate spread

4-8 metres

Time to ultimate height

20-50 years


Preferred common name

Japanese snowbell

Family

Styracaceae


Styrax can be deciduous or evergreen trees or shrubs with simple, alternate leaves and nodding bell-shaped, fragrant white flowers in spring or summer

S. japonicus is an elegant medium-sized deciduous tree with spreading branches with finely-pointed ovate leaves turning yellow and orange in autumn. Bell-shaped white flowers 15mm in width, with yellow stamens, borne in profusion beneath the branches

Other common names

  • snowflake flower

How to grow

Sunlight

  • Full sun
  • Part shade

Aspect

  • East-facing, South-facing or West-facing
  • Sheltered

Cultivation

Easy to grow in moist, humus-rich, fertile soils but shelter from cold drying winds

Soil

  • Well-drained or Moist but well-drained
  • Acid or Neutral
  • Loam, Clay or Sand

Propagation

Propagate from softwood cuttings in summer or propagate by seed sown fresh at 15°C reducing the temperature to 0 to 5°C after 3 months

Suggested planting locations and garden types

Low Maintenance


How to care

Pruning

Pruning group 1

Pests

Generally pest free

Diseases

Generally disease free