Japanese laurel

Japanese laurel Care

Aucuba japonica

What is the plant

Aucuba japonica, commonly called spotted laurel, Japanese laurel, Japanese aucuba or gold dust plant, is a shrub native to rich forest soils of moist valleys, thickets, by streams and near shaded moist rocks in China, Korea, and Japan.

Aucuba are grown for their bold foliage, autumn fruit, and adaptability to shade, dry soil, pollution, and coastal conditions. A. japonica is a rounded, evergreen shrub with small, reddish purple flowers in spring, and red berries (on female plants) in fall. It grows to about 10 feet tall and wide. 'Crotonifolia' has leaves that look like they were speckled with yellow paint. 'Gold Dust' is female with heavy yellow speckling. 'Mr. Goldstrike' is male, more upright, and has gold-splashed leaves. Use as a hedge or specimen, in a container outdoors, or as an imposing houseplant.

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Humidity

Normal

Lighting

Part Sun

Temperature

5°C - 24°C

Hardiness zone

min 7b

Difficulty

Medium

Toxicity

Poisonous

How to Care for the Plant

Water
Once established, it rarely requires watering and will tolerate drought.
Pruning
To prune a plant to encourage bushy new growth, snip off the dominant buds on select stems, staggering the cuts to encourage varied growth.
Fertilizer
Use a 5-10-10 blend or 10-10-10 fertilizer diluted to 1/4th strength.

Disease diagnosis

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Sunlight
Full sun to partial shade.
Soil
Avoid using heavy soil. It may be too compacted for your potted plant and won't allow air to get to the roots.
Temperature
Indoor plants require a cool room with temperatures in the 50-65F range.

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Container
Plants that don't like a lot of moisture will need a drainage hole for moisture to escape and for airflow to circulate through the pot. Another important function of drainage holes is to allow water to flush the soil of excess salts from fertilizers.
Popularity
1,255 people already have this plant 329 people have added this plant to their wishlists