Euonymus japonicus

Brilliant Golden Variegated Leaves Bring Your Landscape to Life Look around your landscape. If it's like most landscapes, you see lots of green. From the grass in your lawn to the leaves on your trees and shrubs, you probably have plenty of green. But you can use one simple design trick to brighten and refresh your entire landscape '– simply by adding variegated plants to break up the sea of green! And if you choose variegated plants that are also evergreen, you'll enjoy the bonus of year-round color. Our horticulturists recommend a versatile plant that is evergreen, variegated, and so easy to care for '– Golden Euonymus (Euonymus japonicus 'Aureomarginatus'). Showy and Textural Foliage The foliage of Golden Euonymus forms a striking pattern. Each richly colored green leaf features a brightly colored edging of cheerful golden-yellow. And we're not talking about tiny leaves with small splashes of color. The leaves of Golden Euonymus grow up to 3 inches long with wide yellow margins! So, you will not have to squint to see the green-and-yellow variegation. You'll even notice a textural quality because the leaves are gently serrated near the tips. And the foliage is thick and lustrous, so it holds up during rainstorms without being damaged. An Evergreen with Year-Round Color When deciduous shrubs and trees shed their leaves in autumn and flowering perennials begin their winter's nap, you can rely on Golden Euonymus to continue adding color to your landscape. The color does not fade from season to season; it maintains the same vibrancy in the heat of summer as it does through a cold winter. So as many other plants in your landscape transition back and forth, depending on season, Golden Euonymus is a dependable evergreen that keeps its year-round coloration. You May Also See Tiny Flowers You'll grow Golden Euonymus for its foliage, but we thought we'd mention that it also produces tiny, white flowers. You may not even notice these flowers, which appear in late spring to early summer, because the foliage definitely takes center stage on these shrubs. But Golden Euonymus is different than other flowering shrubs because its spectacular color is dependent on its foliage, not its flowers. This is a big plus compared to the short-blooming times of other shrubs that offer pretty color that's only temporary. Bold Accent Plant Even if you planted only one Golden Euonymus, it would make an immediate impact statement in your landscape. You can grow it front and center as an up-close focal point, or you can place it at a far-off spot in your landscape where you want to enjoy a pop of color in the distance. As a matter of consideration for scale, Golden Euonymus can potentially reach a height of 10 feet, although heights of 5 to 8 feet are often more common. Magnificent Privacy Hedge As dramatic a statement as a single Golden Euonymus plant makes, can you even imagine what a row of them looks like? If you've wanted to plant a long privacy hedge, or a shorter privacy screen, you've probably considered the traditional plant choices that form a hedge as they grow. But if you'd like your landscape to stand apart from all those that have cookie-cutter hedges of solid green, why not grow Golden Euonymus as a beautifully variegated alternative? Space individual plants 4 feet apart, and watch them grow together as the plants mature to form a privacy hedge that blocks the view behind it. And unlike other hedging plants that have small leaves, Golden Euonymus makes an ideal hedge because of its thick leaves and its dense growth habit. Versatile Shrub for Your Border Garden A versatile trait of Golden Euonymus shrubs is their ability to tolerate partial shade. In fact, if you live in the hotter regions of its perennial range across USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 6 through 9, Golden Euonymus will actually prefer some afternoon shade. If you have a transitional area in your yard that receives part sun and part shade, Golden Euonymus performs like a champ! What comes to mind is a landscape-design effect called a "border garden." Originally, a border garden was designed as an area that was planted as a buffer between your yard and the border that defined your property line. But this design feature has been expanded to include the border in front of any home or garden structure, such as a fence, a garden wall, or the side of your house or garage. Golden Euonymus is so versatile that it can grow in all these places, and it's particularly lovely as the backdrop for smaller plants in your border garden. Foundation Plant with Character If you want a variegated evergreen that bumps up the look of your foundation planting, Golden Euonymus has you covered. Stagger it between solid-green evergreen shrubs for a two-tone look or grow it as a single row of shrubs at your home's foundation.