Symplocos paniculata

Sapphireberry, Asiatic Sweetleaf

Symplocaceae

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Habitat

  • native to China and Japan
  • hardy to zone 4

Habit and Form

  • a deciduous large shrub or small tree
  • wide-spreading
  • 10' to 20' tall
  • equal spread
  • medium texture
  • slow growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • alternate leaf arrangement
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • obovate leaf shape
  • 1.5" to 3.5" long
  • minute serrations
  • pubescent
  • dark green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

  • not ornamentally important

Flowers

  • creamy white flowers
  • fragrant
  • borne in panicles
  • 2" to 3" long
  • blooms in June

Fruit

  • drupe
  • 0.33" in diameter
  • blue, bright
  • matures in September

Bark

  • ridged and furrowed
  • gray bark color

Culture

  • transplant easily
  • prefers well-drained soil
  • full sun to partial shade

Landscape Use

  • border
  • screen
  • specimen
  • attract birds

Liabilities

  • need two for good fruit set
  • no serious problems

ID Features

  • fat ovoid, imbricate, gray-brown buds
  • bright blue fruit
  • creamy white flowers
  • deciduous shrub

Propagation

  • by cuttings
  • by seed

Cultivars/Varieties

  • none

© Copyright Mark H. Brand, 1997-2015.

The digital materials (images and text) available from the UConn Plant Database are protected by copyright. Public use via the Internet for non-profit and educational purposes is permitted. Use of the materials for profit is prohibited.

Citation and Acknowledgements: University of Connecticut Plant Database, http://hort.uconn.edu/plants, Mark H. Brand, Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, Storrs, CT 06269-4067 USA.