Above: Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’ blooming in the Nut Walk.
There are several plants with fragrant winter flowers here at Denmans Garden and few of them are very showy. In fact, most of them, like wintersweet and sweet box, have such tiny flowers that when you first encounter their scent it can take a while to locate them, so concealed are they by their leaves.
One of the most beautiful, perfumed winter-bloomers are daphnes and this month, the one that stands out best for both colour and fragrance is winter daphne, Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’. A very pretty shrub, its glossy green foliage is edged by creamy white margins which adds interest year-round.
Blooming now, this daphne features intensely fragrant waxy flowers that begin as clusters of dark pink buds, opening to pale pink and white star-shaped blossoms that grow in round clusters resembling tiny, tidy bouquets. In warmer weather, their scent wafts throughout the garden, adding a delightful element to a late winter’s day.
This daphne is beautiful planted as part of a border or as a specimen in a small garden and combines well with other winter bloomers such as Camellia x williamsii, Cyclamen coum, and all kinds of winter blooming bulbs and hellebores. It does very well in the shade of small deciduous trees like amelanchiers and Japanese maples, where they are protected from hot summer sun and their variegated leaves subtly stand out in the shade.
Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’ is a little less finicky than other daphnes and is slightly more winter hardy than the species. Tolerating temperature down to -12°C (10°F), and like all daphnes, it requires semi-shade in loamy well-draining but moist soil. They do not like very hot summers, they do like a bit of winter protection especially from wind, and they do not like to be moved so plant them where they are likely to remain.
Also, like other daphnes, which are native to China and Japan, ‘Aureomarginata’ takes a few years to become established and is slow growing, ultimately reaching to 3-4′ tall and to 2-4′ wide
All parts of the plant are poisonous and are also deer resistant, so keep this in mind if you have small children or garden in deer country.
The genus name, daphne, comes from Greek mythology. Daphne was the daughter of a river god who was so aggressively pursued by Apollo that her father changed her into a laurel tree to escape him. It might also come from and Indo-European word meaning ‘odor’ while the specific epithet, ‘odora’, derives from the Latin word for ‘fragrant’.
