Aucuba

Aucuba (Aucuba japonica)

Japanese Aucuba, Gold Dust Plant, Spotted Laurel

Part to full shade, moderately moist to well-drained, tolerates clay soils, pH 5.5–7.0. Drought stress increases in full sun exposure.

6–10 feet tall and 5–9 feet wide; flowers inconspicuous, March–April; red berries on female plants persist through winter; dioecious — male and female plants required for fruit set.

Propagation: semi-hardwood cuttings in late summer root readily; division of rooted suckers in spring.

Native region: Not native to Tennessee; ornamental introduction from Japan and China.

Aucuba is one of the few shrubs that genuinely thrives under dense canopy shade and competes with surface tree roots — conditions that defeat most ornamentals in Middle Tennessee landscapes. The glossy, often yellow-splashed foliage of variegated cultivars (notably 'Crotonifolia' and 'Picturata') provides year-round structure in shaded beds where herbaceous plantings go dormant. Susceptibility to spider mites increases markedly during hot, dry summers in Zone 7a; overhead irrigation or high-humidity siting reduces pressure. Aucuba tolerates the heavy clay soils common across the Central Basin but will root-rot in poorly drained spots — amend or mound slightly at planting. Bagworms and scale insects are the primary insect threats on established plants.