Hardiness zones:
Sunset 8, 9, 12-24
USDA 8 - 11

Landscape Use: Background, large informal hedge visual screen, foundation plant for larger buildings, nice small multiple-trunk tree with dense canopy, excellent for use around water, mesic landscape design themes

Form & Character: Large shrub to small tree, evergreen, rounded to decurrent and weeping, luxuriant, tropical

Growth Habit: Moderately vigorous, irregular to 25 to 35' with an equal spread, can maintain at 10'

Foliage/texture: Dark green leaves alternate in arrangement, to 6" long, oblong-lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, prominently 3-veined, glossy dark green; petiole to 3/4" long. Young stems green, medium to coarse texture depending on use and plant size

Flowers & fruits: Small yellow-green flowers, very small, in slender, erect panicles to 4" long, usually shorter at leaf axillary meristems in spring. Fruit a very small black drupe (.25"). Plants are not reproductive (bare flowers and fruit) in shade.

Seasonal color: None

Temperature: Tolerant

Light: Full sun to shade although becomes less dense in shade. Leaves 1/2 size in full sun, lighter green, and cupped.

Soil: Develops foliar iron chlorosis in alkaline soils

Watering: Regular watering

Pruning: Prune to shape. Can also severe renewal prune to rejuvenate

Propagation: Cutting

Disease and pests: Foliar scale insects in tight landscape spaces with poor air circulation.

Additional comments: Surprisingly versatile (many landscape exposures), old fashioned, large landscape shrub for mesic and oasis landscape design themes. It's very clean appearance makes it an excellent small patio tree once trained as standard.