Oleander
Nerium oleander · Apocynaceae · 협죽도
How to spot it
Identified by narrow, leathery leaves up to 2.5 cm wide in whorls, five-petaled flowers with a corona, and paired follicles.
Look
- Leaves
- Linear-lanceolate leathery simple leaves 10 to 18 cm long and up to 2.5 cm wide, pointed, with smooth margins.
- Flowers
- Funnel-shaped five-petaled flowers (2.5 to 3.8 cm across) in white, deep pink, salmon or apricot bloom from late spring to late summer in terminal cymes; fragrant, with a corona on the corolla.
- Fruit
- Slender pods (follicles) 13 to 18 cm long hang in pairs, each splitting open on one side to release small tufted seeds.
- Bark
- The stem is sturdy like a cane; twigs are thick, glossy green.
Where it grows
- Native to
- Native to Europe and Asia.
- Ecology
- Prefers sunny, well-drained, fertile sites and grows fast; weak against cold below 0 degrees C.