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Many factors go into choosing which plants we use in our landscapes. For most of us, the primary concern is the aesthetic value of the plant – how it looks in our yards. We all have different tastes, so we may value plants differently in this way, but I imagine appearance is at or near the top of almost everyone’s list when choosing plants. We may also factor in things like the smell or feel of a plant, its country of origin, or its relative ease of care. Some gardeners may, at least on occasion, make plant selections based not only on how well a plant performs inside the garden, but also outside of the garden. I’m thinking of Aucuba japonica, the Japanese Aucuba, which is not only a stalwart of gardens used in foundation plantings and other landscape settings, but also a plant prized for its foliage in flower arrangements, centerpieces, wreaths, and other types of indoor decoration. Aucuba Japonica is a mid-sized evergreen shrub that does very well in partial to full shade. Various resources will tell you it can grow to 6-10 feet tall and 4-6 feet wide, though I can’t remember ever seeing one that large. They are often used as foundation plants or as low screens or hedges, and may be pruned either by the gardener who cares for it or by grazing deer who also seem to love it. Leaves may be solid green, as long as 6-8 inches, with a glossy finish and somewhat leathery feel. However, leaves are often variegated, with yellow spots and streaks.
The cultivar known as ‘Variegata,’ often referred to as Gold Dust Aucuba, features leaves that are dazzlingly spotted with blotches of yellow. While this is the most popular Aucuba cultivar, it is not the only one, and each differs in its foliar display. Mature leaves of ‘Picturata’ resemble Gold Dust, but newest leaves emerge with a wide yellow streak through the middle between dark green leave margins. ‘Sulphurea Marginata’ does the opposite. The center part of each leaf is a slender streak of green, but the rest of the leaf is golden yellow. Even the cultivars with solid green leaves, like ‘Nana,’ a dwarf, compact Aucuba, and ‘Pacman,’ another smaller cultivar that also has contorted leaves, are attractive, as the foliage stands out amidst other shrubs with smaller, duller, or more traditionally shaped leaves.
Aucuba is easy to grow in the right spots. It likes moist, well-drained, slightly acidic soils in partial to full shade. It can have some problems with pests like scale, or deer, and it can suffer from root rot if soil drainage is poor. Its prized foliage can also burn if grown in full sun, so protection is important. Its insignificant spring flowers usually go unnoticed, and female plants do produce a modest display of red berries in fall and winter, but its glorious foliage is undoubtedly the main reason for growing Aucuba. Matthew Stevens is the County Extension Director and Horticulture Agent for North Carolina Cooperative Extension’s Pitt County Center. If you have questions about this article or gardening in general, please contact the Pitt County Extension Master Gardeners at [email protected] or 252-902-1705.
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Have you ever visited somewhere else with a slightly different climate or soil type and noticed a different style of landscaping or a different collection of plants that filled those landscapes? If so, perhaps you left wondering why we don’t grow those same plants at home or whether we could if we tried. North Carolina is proud to be home to both mountains and beaches, which means we don’t have far to go in either direction to encounter new worlds of plants. Perhaps you’ve spent some time at the beach, in which case you’ve no doubt encountered Sea oats, Uniola paniculata, a long-lived native warm-season grass used for dune stabilization. Plants grow 6 feet tall by 2 feet wide, and produce a panicle inflorescence that gives way to flat tan seedheads. 
Top photo: Sea oats are grown at the beach for dune stabilization. Middle row, left: The seed head has long slender foliage attached to stiff stems. Seed heads emerge green in spring, turn tan in summer, and purple in fall. Photo: K. Schultz, CC BY 2.0 Middle row, right: Seed head in late summer, as it begins to turn color. Photo: Klasse im Garten, CC BY 2.0 Lower row, left: Leaves and fruit. Photo: J. Robbins, CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 Lower right: Sea oats are a clump-forming type of grass that spreads by both seeds and rhizomes. Photo: J. Robbins, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 While you won’t see this plant much outside of its typical coastal usage, there is an alternative that, while not especially common, is a little better suited for usage throughout the rest of our state. This alternative is Northern Sea Oats, Chasmanthium latifolium, also known as River Oats, Inland Sea Oats, or Indian Wild Oats. Northern Sea Oats is a native herbaceous perennial grass, found from Central Canada, throughout the Central and Eastern United States, and Northeast Mexico, and it was named the 1994 NC Wildflower of the Year by the North Carolina Botanical Garden.
Northen Sea Oats grows to about 5 feet tall, with long slender foliage attached to stiff stems that sway in the breeze. Panicle-type flowers bloom from June to October, and form flattened seed heads that change from green to tan to purple as they mature from July through November. While a bit unconventional looking, the appearance of a mass of these seedheads is both interesting and attractive, and fits well in wildflower or natural garden plantings. It is also a good fit in plantings near bodies of water or in rain gardens. Northern Sea Oats is a clump-forming type of grass. It spreads by both seeds and rhizomes, and some may consider it weedy due to its propensity to spread. However, as long as you provide adequate space for it to spread, it shouldn’t be problematic. As a native, it is useful in attracting and feeding a variety of butterflies, birds, and small mammals, though deer tend to leave it alone. Matthew Stevens is the County Extension Director and Horticulture Agent for North Carolina Cooperative Extension’s Pitt County Center. If you have questions about this article or gardening in general, please contact the Pitt County Extension Master Gardeners at [email protected] or 252-902-1705. |
Matt Stevens
Pitt County Extension Director & Horticulture Agent Archives
December 2025
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