Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball

Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball is a low-growing, variegated evergreen shrub with golden green foliage and tiny fragrant purple flowers. It creates excellent low hedging or garden screen in warm sheltered conditions.

Pittosporum Tenuifolium is native to New Zealand and the variety Golden Ball was bred to suit domestic gardens. It’s more commonly called New Zealand Pittosporum Golden Ball.

It has small leathery golden green variegated new foliage that matures to darker green ending yellow-green by mid-summer. In May and June it produces tiny fragrant purple flowers that smell like honey and often have people wondering where the scent is coming from. These flowers mature into rounded fruits that split open on the shrub in late summer. New Zealand Pittosporum Golden Ball naturally grows in a globe-shape and makes excellent topiary or an alternative to box.

Height And Spread of Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball
Golden Ball will grow to a maximum height and spread of 1 to 1.5 metres.

How Hardy Is Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball
Pittosporum can be frost tender in colder parts of the UK. It does best in the warmer south, but if grown in northerly areas it should be planted in a sheltered position free from frost pockets. It is rarely bothered by pests and once established can be left to its own devices.

How To Use Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball
New Zealand Pittosporum Golden Ball is a good choice for low hedging and screens in coastal areas. It suits a low maintenance wildlife friendly garden and fills a gap in the border with bright golden greenery from spring to autumn. This is a fast-growing low evergreen with a rounded natural habit, forming a dense foliage.

You can grow Golden Ball in a plant container but it should be well watered and fed. Container and border grown specimens suit topiary and can be clipped the same way as box. Golden Ball looks good paired with Pittosporum Golf Ball.

How To Care For Pittosporum Tenuifolium Golden Ball
Pittosporum are straight-forward to grow. They like moist but well-drained soil in a sheltered spot and need plenty of sun to thrive. In a sunny spot the foliage is brighter and the flowers more numerous than partial shade.

There is no need to prune but it takes well to clipping after the flowers are spent in late spring and again in late summer if necessary. A thick layer of mulch around the roots in spring helps trap moisture and boosts nutrients for the growing season.