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Lindera tonkinensis

Tonkin spice bush

Slim, elegant, evergreen shrub or small tree about 5m tall bearing long slender, papery bright green leaves to 14cm long with orange bristly hairs along the prominent veins underneath. Yellow flowers are produced singly or in small umbels from the leaf axils mid autumn to early spring followed by black fruit, late spring to late summer, on female plants if pollinated by a male plant

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Ultimate height

4–8 metres

Time to ultimate height

5–10 years

Ultimate spread

1.5–2.5 metres

Loam

Sand

Moisture

Moist but well–drained

pH

Acid

	Stem	Flower	Foliage	Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Partial shade

Aspect

East–facing or North–facing or West–facing

Exposure

Sheltered

Hardiness
Hardiness ratings
All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets
H1a: under glass all year (>15C)
H1b: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
H1c: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)

Botanical details

Family: Lauraceae
Native to the UK: No
Foliage: Evergreen
Habit: Columnar upright
Genus: Lindera can be deciduous or evergreen trees or shrubs with aromatic leaves and small star-shaped dioecious flowers in axillary umbels in spring followed, on pollinated female plants, by glossy berries
Name status: Correct
Plant range: China, Laos, Vietnam

How to grow

Cultivation

Grow in fertile, moist but well-drained acid soil in part shade with shelter

Propagation

Propagate by greenwood cuttings in early summer

Suggested planting locations and garden types

City and courtyard gardens
Coastal
Cottage and informal garden
Mediterranean climate plants
Wildlife gardens
Low Maintenance

Pruning

Pruning group 1

Pests

Generally pest-free

Diseases

Generally disease-free

Get involved

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