Osmanthus fragrans - Sweet Olive

When you are looking for a plant to provide an aromatic aura Osmanthus fragrans is a plant to consider. Sweet Olive is a great as background hedge plant with its dark green leaves and beautiful and fragrant but nearly inconspicuous white flowers. The Sweet Olive flowers are less than 1/4" across. I strongly recommend keeping the hedge trimmers away though. The cut leaves stay on the plant way too long showing off those wounds. Osmanthus fragrans is such a graceful plant when trimmed with a soft outer edge. This is much better than twig stubs and gray scarred leaves. Osmanthus fragrans will take some drought but prefers evenly moist neutral well drained soil. Don't we all?