Plant pick: variegated false holly

Now is a great time to improve your winter landscape. If you’re looking to add a bright spot, try variegated false holly, an extremely tough, striking evergreen shrub, featuring brilliant cream-edged foliage that holds up well in full sun or full shade. This plant, officially known as osmanthus heterophyllus variegatus, can be kept in a large container for many years. It can also be pruned into a dense, impenetrable hedge or left alone to create an informal border as a small, multistemmed tree. Once it is well established it will produce tiny — but powerfully fragrant — flowers in fall. It is a slow- to moderate-growing shrub that should reach 6 feet in 10 years. It is drought tolerant once established, but looks better with some summer watering.

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