A lovely dense row of Eugenia forms a fence in any regular gardens to provide privacy for the homeowners. This lustrous leaved shrub creates an adorable hedge and potted plant to the landscape.
The fast-growing privacy plants are often used for topiaries as well. Catch on what varieties that offer supercilious foliar attraction in this article. Moreover, you might learn how to grow Eugenia with the best low maintenance. Then, enjoy this fine-textured foliage blossoming in spring!
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Eugenia Plant Features
Eugenia that belongs to family Myrtaceae has creamy-white flowers. The blossoms come with tiny pink and red berries in summer.
Syzygium paniculatum or Eugenia myrtifolia has opposite leaves that are paired on an axis. They come in oval and look shiny. Whereas, small clusters of the blossoms are solitary. Besides, the tart fruits appear from every branch.
Popular Eugenia Plant Fact
Eugenia is native to South Florida, tropical America, Australia, and other tropics and subtropics. This brush cherry has nearly 1000 distinct species.
The young leaves appear reddish and change to green as they mature. Keep this hardy and great-looking shrub at a height of 1.5 to 1.8 meters. Meanwhile, let the tree grow about 3.6 to 4.6 meters for larger foliage. The tallest plant can reach up to 6 meters.
Expose the shrubs to full sunlight or place them in partial shade areas to thrive well. The potted plants are more difficult to care for than the ground foliage. However, the temperate regions can enjoy these pretty shrubs due to their easy arrangement.
Distinctive Eugenia Plant Varieties
Some common types of Eugenia have differences in producing fruits, flowers, and coloration. All variants can be used as interior and exterior foliage. The most popular varieties include Surinam cherry, cherry of the Rio Grande, Grumichama, and Pitomba.
Training Eugenia Topiary
Since this tropical tree has delicate branches and tiny leaves, it can be trimmed into the topiary. The plant works well to training as a single ball or several ones. The bare stem that locates in the center connects these rounded shapes.
Start to make a topiary with an untrained plant by removing the branches below the central stem. Utilize shears to trim the leaves so that they fill out on the top to form a round shape like a ball.
Then, go on to the next ball-form by shaping the upper foliage and cut the branches from another central stem at the lower ball.
On the other hand, if you start to trim with a topiary-shaped tree, prune the tip of the leafy parts and cut back from the bare stems to shape a new growth into a ball. This way will help to withhold the previous form.
Eugenia Uniflora Medicinal Uses
The essential oil from the leaves of Surinam cherry becomes antifungal, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. By evaluating in mice, it shows that the EO can reduce lipid peroxidation in their kidney.
If there is an antimicrobial activity from Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus, the oil will inhibit these two pathogenic bacteria. Moreover, the growth of Candida species, C. lipolytica, and C. guiliermondii can be restrained.
Therefore, E. Uniflora popularly functions as an anti-rheumatic, diuretic, anti-inflammatory, anti-febrile agent. Besides, it is a means of therapy for stomach illnesses.
In the cosmetics industry, this plant and its pleasant aroma are used as astringent properties. Some products of the EO include hair conditioners, shampoo, bath, and face soaps.
Eugenia Myrtifolia Plant Details
Some companion plants for Eugenia like Hibiscus, Camella, and Oleander are perfect match to completing your landscape ornament. Choose the best location that will protect the foliage from strong winds to keep it more fertile. To make a hedge, grow with a spacing of 91 to 152 centimeters.
Keep a distance of one meter from the house. Add more space if the tree is growing along the walkways. The pant spacing near other small plants is about 1.2 meters. Moreover, it can be grown in a large planter and container.
Common Eugenia Problems
Generally, whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs, and red spider mites can infect this topiary plant. Instead of pest infections, excessive watering may deteriorate the tree by developing root rot. While lacking light, the tree’s stems become longer with pale leaves.
Moreover, Eugenia can be infected by Neofusicoccum parvum. This fungus causes a dieback disease that make the branches wilt and defoliate. The signs of illness will appear to the whole tree canopy. There is also a red discoloration in the vascular tissue.
This fungus is also found in other plants instead of this glossy shrub. It grows fast and produces fluffy gray colonies. Besides, unicellular conidia are formed to create pigmentation.
Dieback happens due to high temperatures during the late summer season. However, the severity of the disease is not caused by full sun exposure. The symptoms will appear as the degree of hotness increases.
To know the disease cycle and external factors, you should evaluate the soil fertility and water quality. Also, observe how the fungus spreads from one tree to another.
Furthermore, the proper treatment to heal the dieback disease on Eugenia is by pruning the branches where the symptoms appear. Remove the infected cuttings from the foliage to avoid spreading the pathogen.
Then, to minimize the infection to the cut tissue, you can apply fungicides after pruning. Cover all surfaces for the best protection. Since the disease often occurs on the stressed plant, health maintenance should be managed well to prevent the tree from dieback.
Importantly, sterilize all tools before pruning the plant. Always sanitize after each use by dipping the shears into disinfectant liquid.
Eugenia Plant Care Guide
Grow Eugenia in well-drained soil. Add organic matter like cow manure and peat moss to each tree’s planting area. Then, you can either let the plant grow naturally with less trimming or trim regularly to shape the foliage.
Keep watering the foliage, although sometimes it needs a little bit of time to dry out. In summer, you need to water the plant once a week. Meanwhile, just give it every ten days in winter. Since Eugenia is sensitive to excess salts, make sure that the tree is not contaminated with this substance.
Do not forget to use good quality fertilizer three times a year. Fertilize the plant in the fall, summer, and spring season. Do it regularly every 3 or 4 weeks. Apply organic substances that are rich in Potassium and Nitrogen to make the foliage more fertile.
Eugenia Benefits for Landscape
You can grow Eugenia in a container as a bonsai. Then, place it on the porch, patio, garden, or any outdoor areas that will not be exposed by direct sun. This architectural accent will enhance the look of your landscape.
In a raised bed garden, grow this foliage as a backdrop for smaller plants. Another usage is being a camouflage for pool equipment. It can also add texture while attaching along a blank wall. Moreover, bordering the property line will be a good landscape use of Eugenia.
Then, use some natural growing trees for lining a walkway and driveway. Those plants can create shelter areas along the way. On the other hand, shape the shrubs into topiaries to build along the fence, privacy screen, and hedge.
Top Ways of Growing Eugenia
To multiply the plants, you can start growing from seeds or cuttings. The shrubs should be planted in a container indoors, whereas directly cultivate them in the soil for outdoors.
Cuttings and Seedlings
You can grow from tree cuttings that covered with a film. Combine perlite and peat to plant them. Then, place in a shaded area to prevent the bush from direct sunlight. However, if you feel difficult to cultivate in this way, spreading by seeds will be more acceptable.
Start to germinate the seeds in January. Mix the soil with sand and peat. After sowing the surface, cover with polyethylene. The germination requires diffuse lighting at a temperature of 21 degrees Celsius.
Seed germination takes about 3 to 4 weeks. Plunging the seedlings and creating the crowns are necessary during the process. Also, prune the tip of the young shoot to reach the proper height.
Moreover, lift the young growth in other soil every year. Meanwhile, you can transplant adult plants every three years. For the oldest foliage, the top surface of the planting area needs to be changed.
Indoors and Outdoors
Eugenia can be grown both indoors and outdoors. A large pot with some holes in the bottom can be the best container to plant the shrub. Combine sand and potting soil to obtain porosity. Grow a standard tree by starting staking the young leaves.
Fertilize and change the pot every three years. Maintain regularly in spring and prune to remove the dead leaves or branches. Routine trimming will keep the growth habit more compact. Move the potted shrubs indoors when cold weather comes.
While placing indoors, locate the potted plants in full sun exposure. Also, keep the soil moist to thrive well. Providing adequate water becomes the primary key to achieve successful Eugenia care.
On the other hand, this hardy foliage can be planted directly in the ground garden. Provide soil with organic compost to prepare growing outdoor trees. Ensure that it is mixed with sulfur and bone meal instead of the base land. Remember to throw away any roots and rocks on the surface.
Finally, Eugenia becomes a perfect choice to give a formal touch to your patio or porch. This foliage looks great to training as a ball, spiral, pom-pom, cone, and other attractive shapes. Feel free to experiment with this evergreen shrub.