Shrub
Sweet box
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flowers | Flowers in January | Flowers in February | Flowers in March | Flowers in December | ||||||||
| Plant | Plant in March | Plant in April | Plant in September | Plant in October | ||||||||
| Prune | Prune in April | |||||||||||
| Looks good | Looks good in January | Looks good in February | Looks good in March | Looks good in December |
Overview
Sarcococca is easy to overlook for eleven months of the year: a neat mound of glossy, pointed evergreen leaves. Then in December and January it opens tufts of small white flowers with a vanilla-honey fragrance strong enough to stop you on a cold morning. Black berries follow. Sarcococca confusa makes an upright shrub to about head height, while S. hookeriana var. digyna is lower, with narrower leaves and pink-tinged flowers, and slowly spreads by suckers to form a weed-suppressing clump.
Where to grow sweet box
Sweet box is one of the best shrubs for dry or deep shade under trees, beside north-facing walls and in town gardens with little sun. It copes with most soils, including chalk and clay, as long as they do not sit waterlogged. It also does well in a large pot by the front door.
Planting
Plant in spring or early autumn, working leaf mould or garden compost into the hole, especially in dry shade beneath trees. Water thoroughly and keep watering through the first summer, as roots competing with trees dry out quickly.
Care through the year
Spring
Mulch with leaf mould or bark after flowering to hold in moisture.
Summer
Water plants in containers and young shrubs under trees during dry weather.
Autumn
Watch the flower buds swell; a light feed is not needed on most soils.
Winter
Cut a few sprigs for a vase indoors, where the scent fills a room.
Pruning
Very little is needed. After flowering, cut out any dead, damaged or straggly stems at the base. To keep a clump of S. hookeriana in bounds, slice off outer suckers with a spade.
Propagation
Take semi-ripe cuttings in late summer and root them in a cold frame or covered pot. Suckering kinds can be divided in spring by lifting a rooted piece from the edge of the clump.
Common problems
Sweet box is in the same family as box and can be affected by box blight, which causes brown leaf spots, black streaks on stems and leaf drop. Buy healthy stock, avoid wetting the foliage when watering, and clear fallen leaves from infected plants. Otherwise it is largely pest-free.
Guides to the problems most likely to affect sweet box:
Something else wrong? Diagnose it by symptom.
Month-by-month reminders
Jobs for this plant come round in March, April, September and October. Each month page lists everything else worth doing in the garden at the same time.
Related plants
Sources
Botanical names follow Kew's Plants of the World Online; growing attributes were checked against the references below. Text is our own. See our editorial policy.