Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Tandara Gold’

 An evergreen with pretty pale green to yellow-gold centred leaves which have a darker margin. As a small tree (or large shrub) it can attain heights of approximately 3m.

‘Tandara Gold’ is a Pittosporum with smaller leaves more delicate than many of its cousins. When these tremble in a breeze you’ll catch the merest glimpse of its jet-black stems too, lurking glossily beneath the cloud of lovely Aurelian foliage. Very striking indeed, and it offers a quietly unusual flourish after the initial impact of the intense gilt-yellow masses drifting above. Golden-hued plants are an essential part of our repertoire and our designers adore ‘Tandara Gold’. They plant it to splash prettily in a sheltered collection of greens (any and all of them) and it can look especially handsome elevated over its russet looking relatives like humps of Tobira ‘Variegatum’. Good too for structural height given its proclivity to be a little more treelike.

Happy in sun to partial shade in moist but well drained and acid to neutral soil. Keep out of cold and drying winds, and strictly away from north-facing sites.

N.B. When clipping several plants with the same tool, have a bucket containing a 5% bleach solution and swish your blades around for 30 seconds between plants to sterilise them. This will help avoid the chance of cross contamination of disease.

As with all woody plants, plant high, exposing as much of the taper at the base of the trunk as possible. Allowing soil to accumulate round the base of a tree can be fatal. Keep very well watered when first planted.