Sarcococca confusa, or winter box, fills the air with its intoxicating fragrance at Brookside.
This compact, dense evergreen shrub is a highly fragrant winter-flowering species with clusters of tiny trumpet-shaped, white flowers produced in the leaf axils, which sit alongside the previous season’s spherical, glossy black fruits. The fruits and flowers sit against a backdrop of glossy elliptical leaves to great effect. In addition to providing evergreen interest in dry, shady situations in the garden, all the Sarcococca make valuable specimens for floristry. A member of the box family, Buxaceae, Sarcococca comprises 14 species of rhizomatous shrubs from Asia. Though there has been much speculation about the origin of Sarcococca confusa, it is believed to be endemic to western China.