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Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

$9995 $13995
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Risk-Free 1 Year Warranty
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Your Plants are Guaranteed to Grow

Your plants are guaranteed to arrive happy & healthy with our 1 Year Warranty. Your order will arrive healthy and stay healthy while they adapt to your climate. If your tree arrives damaged or dies within 30 days, we'll replace it for free. If it dies after 30 days, but before 1 year, we will replace it for just 50% of the current price.

Free Shipping on All Orders

Relax... we've got you covered with free shipping on every order! We ship out so many huge plants, we've negotiated a low rate with our carriers... and we pass those savings on to you! Your plants will ship out the next business day... expertly packed so that your plants will arrive happy and healthy!

Is Now a Good Time to Plant?

Yes! Fall is one of the best times to plant!

Landscaping experts often recommend planting in fall instead of waiting until spring. Here’s why:

  • Cooler weather puts less stress on newly planted trees and shrubs.
  • Fall soil is still warm, which helps roots grow and get established.
  • Cooler temperatures mean less water is lost through the leaves, making it easier for plants to stay hydrated.
  • Even after top growth slows for winter, roots continue developing below ground.
  • Fall weather often brings more rain and less heat, making new plants easier to care for.
  • By spring, your plants already have a head start. Their established roots can support strong new leaves, branches, and flowers.
  • Trees planted in spring must establish their roots while also dealing with rising temperatures and summer heat.

Plant this fall, and your trees can spend the cooler months getting settled instead of waiting until spring to get started!

Planting your Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

Planting Instructions for Fragrant Tea Olive Tree:

  1. Site Selection and Soil Preparation: Fragrant Tea Olive (Osmanthus fragrans) thrives in full sun to partial shade and prefers well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral soil (pH 6.0–7.5). Choose a location with protection from strong winds, and ensure the area has good air circulation to reduce the risk of disease.

  2. Planting Steps:
  • Digging the Hole: Dig a hole twice as wide and slightly shallower than the root ball to prevent water from pooling around the base. This helps the plant avoid root rot when the soil settles.

  • Planting: Place the tree in the hole so that the top of the root ball is slightly above the surrounding soil. Backfill with native soil mixed with compost or well-rotted organic matter.

  • Mulching: Apply a 2–3 inch layer of mulch around the tree, but leave a small gap around the trunk to prevent rot. Mulch helps retain moisture and regulate soil temperature.

  • Watering: Water deeply right after planting to help the roots establish. Continue to water regularly, especially during dry spells, in the first year.

Care Instructions for Fragrant Tea Olive Tree:

  1. Watering: Fragrant Tea Olive trees prefer moist, well-drained soil. Water regularly during the first year, ensuring the soil stays consistently moist but not waterlogged. Once established, they become more drought-tolerant but still benefit from deep watering during dry periods.

  2. Fertilization: Fertilize in early spring with a slow-release, balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) or an acidic fertilizer (such as one designed for azaleas or camellias) to support growth and flowering. Avoid fertilizing late in the season, as this can encourage new growth vulnerable to winter damage.

  3. Sunlight: While Fragrant Tea Olive can tolerate partial shade, it flowers best with plenty of sunlight. In hotter climates, a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade can prevent leaf scorch.

Maintenance and Long-Term Care:

  1. Pruning: Light pruning helps maintain the tree’s shape and encourages denser foliage. Prune after the main flowering period, which typically occurs in late fall or early spring. Remove dead, damaged, or crossing branches to improve air circulation. Avoid heavy pruning, as it may reduce flowering for the next season.

  2. Mulching and Winter Protection: Refresh mulch annually to insulate the roots and conserve moisture. In colder regions (USDA Zone 7 and below), protect your Fragrant Tea Olive from frost by mulching heavily around the base and using frost cloths for younger plants if freezing temperatures are expected.

  3. Pest and Disease Control: Fragrant Tea Olives are generally resistant to most pests and diseases. However, they may occasionally experience issues with scale insects or aphids. Regularly inspect for signs of pest damage (yellowing or sticky leaves) and treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oils if needed. Proper watering and air circulation help prevent fungal issues like root rot.
What Customers say about the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree:

The Fragrant Tea Olive Tree thrives in Zones 7-10

Growing Zones for the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

If you live in the green area above, we recommend the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree.

Your Growing Zone
Recommended Zones 7-10
Mature Height 10 ft.
Mature Width 15 ft.
Cannot Ship To AZ, OR
Sunlight Full to Partial Sun
Botanical Name Osmanthus fragrans

Plants that Make a Difference

For 20+ years, our team has shipped healthy, established plants to gardeners like you- all across the country. Every plant is selected and cared for by our plant experts before it ships to your door.

  • 20+ Years Experience

  • Superior Quality

  • Free Shipping on All Orders

  • Guaranteed to Grow

Close-up of Charleston SC Fragrant Tea Olive flowers densely clustered among dark green foliage.

Beware- not all Fragrant Tea Olives are the same.

Be sure to get superior evergreens, grown by experts.

Better Roots Make Stronger Plants: Some nurseries send you "bare root" evergreens to save on shipping. Even worse, others have started digging them right out of the ground before shipping. This causes major transplant shock and long-term damage. We send you Fragrant Tea Olives in soil-filled containers- ensuring a well-developed root system that will explode with growth and blooms!

Healthy Plants: We've seen other nurseries grow tall evergreens in tiny pots to save on shipping. This leads to a "root bound" tree, where the roots have outgrown their pot- they cannot absorb water and nutrients. They quickly dry out during shipment, leading to an unhealthy tree.

A branch of Fragrant Tea Olive with small white blossoms against a bright blue sky.

Fragrant Tea Olive is one of the most fragrant shrubs for Southern gardens- tiny white flowers with a sweet, apricot-like scent.

  • Sweet fragrance with citrus and jasmine-like notes that can fill a yard
  • Blooms fall through early spring, heaviest in late fall and early spring
  • Evergreen hedge or screen: about 10 ft. tall; space 5-6 ft. apart
  • Drought tolerant once established; grows in zones 7-10

Not all plants are created equal

The Difference Is in the Roots

Every plant we ship has grown in a nursery container with its roots protected, so it arrives healthy, established and ready to thrive in your yard.

A full, branched Nationwide Plants tree in a nursery pot next to a thin bare-root tree with exposed roots Ours: container grown Theirs: bare root
Nationwide Plants Other Nurseries
How it's grown Grown in a nursery container, roots protected the whole time Pulled or dug from the field, tearing fragile roots
How it arrives Arrives in its pot with soil intact Arrives bare root, exposed and drying out
Before shipping Growing naturally until it ships Held dormant in a cooler, then shocked by a hot shipping box
Root health Strong, well-developed roots with room to grow Crammed into a small pot until it's root bound
Height Measured from the top of the soil Often includes the pot and roots
After planting Settles in quickly with less transplant shock Arrives stressed and can take years to recover, if it does

The height you see is the height you plant.

We measure every plant from the top of the soil, not the bottom of the pot. Many nurseries include the pot and roots, so a "5–6 ft." tree from them might stand only 4 ft. tall once it's planted.

Comparisons reflect common practices across the online plant industry, not any single company.

Honest Measurements: Some nurseries measure trees including the pot and roots, so their "2-3 ft." tree may only be about half that size when planted. We measure all of our plants from the soil line, so the height you see is what you can expect after planting.

From our nursery to your door

How We Ship Your Plants

Every order is hand-selected, watered and carefully packed so it arrives healthy and ready to plant. Here's what happens after you place your order.

  1. Hand-Picked for You

    Our team selects the best plant available for your order. For privacy trees, that's the tallest and fullest. For fruit trees, it's the best branched.

    Why it matters: Many online nurseries ship whatever is next in the row.

  2. A Deep Drink Before the Trip

    Every plant gets a thorough watering right before it's packed, so it starts the journey fully hydrated.

  3. Roots Sealed In

    We wrap the pot and roots in plastic to lock in moisture, so your plant has water to drink all the way to your door.

    Why it matters: Bare-root plants are often shipped with their roots exposed and drying out.

  4. Braced for the Ride

    Cardboard inserts are secured inside every box to hold your plant in place, so it won't slide, tip or get damaged in transit.

  5. Shipped Only by FedEx

    We ship your trees exclusively with FedEx. We've found they deliver the fastest and handle live plants the most gently.

And if anything goes wrong, every plant is backed by our 1 Year Warranty.

Healthy Roots Make a Huge Difference

  • Never buy bare-root plants. These trees are starved of nutrients, and have a low survival rate.
  • Beware of nurseries cut corners by growing in small pots. These "rootbound" plants are weak, struggle to absorb nutrients, and die quickly after planting.
  • Some nurseries try to sell oversized plants, but chop off vital roots so they can cram the rootball into a narrow box to save on shipping!

You Want Fragrant Tea Olives Grown by Experts

Some nurseries ship thin, weak shrubs grown in tiny pots to save money. These "root bound" plants struggle after planting and take longer to fill in and bloom well.

Nationwide Plants only sends you strong Fragrant Tea Olives, selected and cared for by our plant experts, with healthy, developed root systems. That means they settle in quickly and start filling your yard with fragrance sooner.

Read more about the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

Fragrant Tea Olive Tree (Osmanthus fragrans)
Experience Year-Round Beauty and Heavenly Fragrance

The Fragrant Tea Olive Tree is a must-have for any garden or landscape, celebrated for its sweet, jasmine-like scent and elegant, evergreen foliage. This versatile and easy-to-grow tree produces small, creamy white blooms that release a delightful fragrance from fall through spring, filling your yard with a refreshing, citrus-floral aroma. Known for its beauty and hardiness, the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree makes an excellent ornamental tree, hedge, or accent plant, offering year-round interest and low-maintenance care.

Key Features of the Fragrant Tea Olive:

  • Incredible Fragrance: Fills the air with a sweet, citrus-like scent from its small, white flowers, blooming from fall through spring.
  • Evergreen Beauty: Features glossy, deep green leaves that provide year-round color and structure to your landscape.
  • Low Maintenance: Requires minimal care once established and thrives in a wide range of climates and soil conditions.
  • Cold Hardy: Grows well in USDA Hardiness Zones 7-10, tolerating both mild winters and hot summers.
  • Compact Growth: Reaches 10-15 feet tall and 6-8 feet wide, making it perfect for hedges, privacy screens, or as a standalone specimen.

Perfect for Hedges, Privacy Screens, or Garden Accents

The Fragrant Tea Olive Tree is highly versatile, fitting beautifully into a variety of landscape designs. Its compact size and lush, dense foliage make it ideal for use as a privacy screen or hedge, creating a fragrant, evergreen barrier along property lines, walkways, or patios. As a specimen tree, it makes a stunning focal point in garden beds or near outdoor seating areas, where its intoxicating fragrance can be fully appreciated.

The tree’s elegant, glossy green leaves provide texture and color year-round, while its fragrant blooms add seasonal interest from fall through early spring. Whether you’re planting it in containers on your patio or incorporating it into a mixed border, the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree enhances both the visual appeal and sensory experience of your garden.

Famous Fragrant Tea Olive Blooms

The Fragrant Tea Olive Tree is especially famous in the southeastern United States, particularly in Savannah, Georgia, where its sweet, citrus-like fragrance drifts through the city’s historic streets and gardens. If you’ve ever strolled through Savannah’s famous squares or taken a historic walking tour, you may have noticed the delightful scent in the air—often coming from these beautiful trees planted along garden paths, near historic homes, and in public courtyards. Their small, creamy white blossoms perfume the city, especially in the fall and spring, adding to Savannah’s old-world charm. Also popular in Charleston, South Carolina, and throughout the Deep South, the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree has long been a staple of Southern landscapes, offering year-round beauty, lush greenery, and an unforgettable fragrancethat enhances both private gardens and public spaces.

Easy to Grow and Care For

The Fragrant Tea Olive Tree is known for its ease of care and adaptability. This low-maintenance tree thrives in full sun to partial shade and adapts well to a variety of soil types, making it a great choice for both beginner and experienced gardeners. Once established, it is drought-tolerant and resistant to pests and diseases, requiring minimal upkeep. Occasional watering, fertilizing, and pruning will keep your Tea Olive Tree healthy and blooming.

Growing Tips:

  • Sunlight: Prefers full sun to partial shade (at least 4-6 hours of direct sunlight daily).
  • Watering: Water regularly during the first growing season to establish roots. Once mature, the tree is drought-tolerant and needs only occasional watering.
  • Soil: Adapts to various soil types but prefers well-drained, slightly acidic soil.
  • Fertilizer: Apply a balanced fertilizer in early spring to encourage lush growth and flowering.
  • Pruning: Light pruning in late winter or early spring helps maintain shape and encourages dense growth.

At Nationwide Plants, we pride ourselves on offering top-quality plants that are carefully nurtured to ensure healthy growth and strong root systems. Our Fragrant Tea Olive Trees are grown with expert care, ensuring they arrive at your door ready to thrive in your landscape. With fast shipping and expert planting advice, we make it easy for you to enjoy the beauty and fragrance of the Tea Olive Tree in your own yard.

Add Fragrance and Evergreen Beauty with the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

Fragrant Tea Olive Tree – Hardy Evergreen with Sweet Blossoms
Enhance your garden or patio with the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree, a hardy evergreen that delights with sweetly scented blooms. This versatile, low-maintenance beauty is easy to grow and perfect for any outdoor space. Enjoy year-round greenery and fragrant blossoms shipped conveniently to your door!

Frequently Asked Questions about the Fragrant Tea Olive Tree

When does Fragrant Tea Olive bloom?

Fragrant Tea Olive blooms mainly from fall through early spring, producing clusters of small, creamy white flowers. The heaviest flowering usually comes in late fall and again in early spring. Although the blooms are tiny, their sweet fragrance can fill an entire yard.

What does Fragrant Tea Olive smell like?

Fragrant Tea Olive has a sweet, fruity scent often compared to apricots, with citrus and jasmine-like notes. It is one of the most fragrant shrubs for Southern gardens and is famous for perfuming the historic squares of Savannah and Charleston. Plant it near walkways, patios, or windows to enjoy the scent.

How big does a Fragrant Tea Olive get?

A Fragrant Tea Olive typically reaches about 10 feet tall with a spread of up to about 15 feet, forming a dense, evergreen shrub or small tree. Its size makes it useful as a fragrant hedge, privacy screen, or specimen. Light pruning keeps it tidy and encourages denser foliage.

What zones does Fragrant Tea Olive grow in?

Fragrant Tea Olive grows in USDA zones 7 through 10. It handles hot summers and mild winters well. In zone 7, mulch heavily around the base and cover young plants with frost cloth when hard freezes are expected. Plant it where it is sheltered from strong winds.

Does Fragrant Tea Olive need full sun?

Fragrant Tea Olive grows in full to partial sun and flowers best with plenty of sunlight. In hot climates, a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade helps prevent leaf scorch while still producing plenty of blooms. Good air circulation helps reduce the risk of disease.

When should I prune a Fragrant Tea Olive?

Prune a Fragrant Tea Olive lightly right after its main flowering period. Remove dead, damaged, or crossing branches and trim to shape. Avoid heavy pruning, which can reduce flowering the following season. Regular light trimming encourages denser foliage for hedges and screens.

Can Fragrant Tea Olive be used as a hedge?

Yes, Fragrant Tea Olive makes an excellent evergreen hedge or privacy screen with dense, glossy leaves and seasonal fragrance. For a continuous hedge, space plants roughly 5 to 6 feet apart so they grow together. Light pruning after flowering keeps the hedge full and neat.

How often should I water a Fragrant Tea Olive?

Water a Fragrant Tea Olive regularly during its first year, keeping the soil consistently moist but not waterlogged. Once established, it becomes quite drought tolerant but still benefits from deep watering during extended dry periods. Mulch helps retain moisture and insulate the roots.

What fertilizer is best for Fragrant Tea Olive?

Feed Fragrant Tea Olive in early spring with a slow-release balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10, or a fertilizer made for acid-loving plants like azaleas and camellias. Avoid fertilizing late in the season, since that encourages tender new growth that can be damaged by winter cold.

What soil does a Fragrant Tea Olive prefer?

Fragrant Tea Olive prefers well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral soil with a pH of about 6.0 to 7.5. Mix compost into the planting hole and set the root ball slightly above the surrounding soil to prevent water from pooling. Soggy soil can lead to root rot.
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