Description

Wintersweet is a cherished deciduous shrub that offers one of the garden’s most magical winter experiences. When much of the landscape is still asleep, its bare, arching branches become adorned from late December onwards with clusters of small, waxy, translucent yellow flowers. The petals curl elegantly backwards, revealing a delicate, maroon-stained center. These unassuming blooms release an extraordinarily potent and sweet fragrance that can carry on the cold winter air, transforming a quiet corner into a perfumed sanctuary. It is a plant of subtle beauty and unforgettable scent, celebrated for bringing life to the dormant season.

• Iconic Winter Fragrance: Its primary glory is the intensely sweet, spicy, and honey-like perfume emitted by its small yellow flowers during the depths of winter.

• Delicate Winter Blooms: Bears numerous small, waxy, pendulous flowers with reflexed (curled-back) yellow petals and a dark maroon center on leafless wood.

• Valuable Seasonal Interest: Provides a rare and precious display of color and scent for 4-6 weeks in mid-winter, typically from December to February in the Bay Area.

• Large, Graceful Shrub: Matures into a substantial, multi-stemmed, vase-shaped shrub with broad, rough-textured leaves that turn yellow in fall.

• Low-Maintenance & Adaptable: Thrives in full sun to part shade in well-drained soil. Once established, it is drought-tolerant and requires only minimal pruning after flowering.