Beni’s Kin

This past weekend, I noticed an unexpected fragrance from the mixed border that surrounds our home. It didn’t take long to realize that it was time for the amazing Autumn tea olives, Osmanthus fragrans to begin their perfumed floral show. The first to open for us this year is the amazing Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus ‘Beni Kin Mokusei’. To say that this evergreen shrub is amazing would be so much of an understatement. For decades, this cultivar was the holy grail for osmanthus collectors because of its supposed red flowers. Well, we can only assume that the Japanese nurseryman who named it is rather color blind. The flower color is darker orange than the old form of Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus, and the habit is much more dense. The cultivar name actually isn’t valid either, as it simply says “red flowering osmanthus” in Japanese. Below is our un-pruned 10 year old specimen in full glory. Hardiness Zone 7a-9b.