Propagating Sweet Shrub (Carolina Allspice)

[journey11]

There is a very old sweet shrub on my dad's farm that I would love to take cuttings from and try to propagate. It would be just the thing for a landscape planting on the NE side of my house. It smells so wonderful--even the leaves and stems have a rich, spicy scent. I have heard that if you buy them from a nursery, you may or may not get one that carries that traditional scent and this one is *perfect*. Can anyone give me a rundown of the technique to do this? They are supposed to also spread by seed, but I have never seen berries on this one or seedlings or runners popping up around it. I guess you would need more than one for it to do that...

 

[obsessed]

Never heard of it must research it!

 

[journey11]

I brought a twig home and keep breaking it so I can enjoy the scent. I wish you could smell it--it is wonderful!!! I'm trying to think what to compare it to. It is a warm, spicy scent.

As a child I remember the blooms smelling slightly peachy. But the twigs and leaves are spicy.

 

[bid]

My grandmother had a large, old sweet shrub by her bedroom window. It got morning sun and really smelled wonderful when it was blooming. I rooted a few plants from it by taking 6-8 inch cuttings after it bloomed and stripping all but the top 2 sets of leaves off. Put them in small pots, kept them damp and out of the sun, but dappled morning sun/bright light for a few months. It has been a while but I seem to remember that all but 1 rooted out of about 6 cuttings, so it either roots easily or I had beginners luck. You might look around the base of your dad's plant and see if there are some babies there that you could excavate. Best of luck as sweet shrub is a great foundation plant, but I can't really describe what it smells like. A hint of cinnamon but ... more.

 

[hoodat]

I'd love to have one of those but I don't know if our warm Winters would suit it.

 

[journey11]

Thanks for the info, Bid. I am can't wait to try it!

Hoodat, good news--there is a California version. I don't know how it compares in scent though. The Carolina sweet shrub is hardy zones 4a to 9b. Here's a link with more info....

 

[hoodat]

Sounds as though Western Sweet bush would do well here. I'm not sure I have enough shade for it but I'll see if any of the local nurseries have one.

 

[elijahboy]

WOW

The shrub is also deer resistant, making it a perfect shrub to plant in areas troubled by frequent deer browsing. While no shrub is entirely safe from a hungry herd of deer, Carolina allspice is one of the few that deer generally wont touch

 

[bethie]

All my life I adored my mothers sweet shrub. I finally planted one 3 years ago and it has become a beautiful bush. The problem is, it never blooms!! Can anyone offer any help here? Thanks!

 

[jojo54]

that sounds like a neat plant - especially with the fragrance. Good luck propagating it!