How to Grow Four-Season Osmanthus? The Latest Planting Techniques and Methods Tutorial

Four-Season Osmanthus is the most common type of osmanthus, a variety of Osmanthus fragrans in the genus Osmanthus. Its biggest difference from other varieties is that it blooms year-round, that is, it blooms in all four seasons, so its other name is Yueyue Gui (monthly osmanthus). However, its fragrance is also the faintest among the many osmanthus varieties, and the floral scent is almost undetectable. Now let us take a look at the planting techniques for four-season osmanthus trees!

Growth Habits of Four-Season Osmanthus

Four-Season Osmanthus prefers a warm, humid climate and has a certain degree of cold resistance, but it is not tolerant of severe cold. It likes light but also tolerates shade, and seedlings need a certain degree of shading. It has low requirements for soil and prefers slightly acidic soil on high, dry terrain that is rich in humus. Deep, fertile, moist, well-drained sandy soil is most suitable. It is not tolerant of arid, barren soil and avoids saline-alkali soil and waterlogged land. Planting it in overly wet ground with poor drainage will cause poor growth, root rot, leaf drop, and ultimately the death of the entire plant.

Propagation Techniques for Four-Season Osmanthus

1. Softwood cuttings: Select superior mother plants with excellent varieties, vigorous growth, and no pests or diseases for cutting collection. When preparing the cuttings, cut them into 2-3 cm lengths, keep 1-2 leaves at the top, cut the upper end flat, and cut the base into a slanted surface. The slanted surface should be smooth to facilitate rooting and healing after cutting. After disinfecting the cuttings, soak them in rooting powder for 10 minutes, then insert them. After cutting, water promptly and cover with plastic film and a sunshade net or straw curtain. Spray a 2000-fold carbendazim solution once every 7 days, and spray a 0.2% urea or potassium dihydrogen phosphate solution once every 10 days.

2. Air layering: Air layering is mostly carried out before spring budding, but it can also be done during summer growth, and doing it during the plum rain season also gives very good results. Make a notch or girdle the bark on one- or two-year-old branches, fill the wound with rice husk ash, moss, potting soil, perlite, and other materials, then wrap it up. Keep it moist at all times, but do not use too much water. Once roots have formed, it can be cut away from the mother plant.

3. Rootstock grafting: The rootstocks mainly used for grafting Four-Season Osmanthus include privet, ash, lilac, and fringetree. The disadvantage of using privet as a rootstock is that its root system is too developed, making it unsuitable for pot cultivation, and it also blooms late. The disadvantage of using ash as a rootstock is its short lifespan, and it tends to shed leaves in winter and bloom less. When lilac is used as a rootstock, the trunk is thick at the top and thin at the bottom, making the tree shape top-heavy. Fringetree as a rootstock has good compatibility, drought and cold resistance, strong adaptability, and a long lifespan, with trees living more than a hundred years. Therefore, the most suitable rootstock for graft propagation of potted osmanthus is fringetree.

Planting Techniques for Four-Season Osmanthus

1. Soil: Four-Season Osmanthus is suitable for growing in loose, fertile, well-drained acidic soil. Generally, 60% broadleaf humus soil, 25% coniferous humus soil, 10% river sand or fine furnace ash, mixed with 5% well-fermented pig manure or chicken manure, can be used.

2. Placement: Four-Season Osmanthus likes light. When grown indoors, it should be placed in a sunny, well-ventilated spot, with 8 to 12 hours of light each day.

3. Temperature: Four-Season Osmanthus likes warmth and generally grows well at 18°C to 25°C, blooming abundantly and with a clear fragrance. If the temperature is below 15°C, it enters a semi-dormant state and blooms less. It can survive winter at 3°C to 5°C, but it cannot bloom.

4. Humidity: Four-Season Osmanthus needs the potting soil kept moist, but not waterlogged. When watering, follow the principle of watering when dry and stopping when wet, and never allow water to accumulate, so as to avoid root rot or leaf drop. Especially when blooming, water should not be too much, to avoid bud drop and affecting flowering.

5. Fertilizing: Four-Season Osmanthus likes fertilizer. During budding and flower bud formation, apply more diluted fertilizer water containing phosphorus and potassium so that the branches and flower buds grow strong. Especially in the few days before flowering, applying some diluted fertilizer water will make the flowers larger, the color brighter, and the fragrance stronger.

6. Pests: The main pests of Four-Season Osmanthus are red spiders and white peach scale, which can be controlled by spraying pesticides.