Soft Caress Mahonia Mahonia eurybracteata 'Soft Caress' PP20183 Plant Details USDA Plant Hardiness Zones: 7a-9b Find Your Zone Plant Type: Evergreen Flowering Shrub Height at Maturity: 3-4' Width at Maturity: 3-4' Spacing: 2.5' for solid hedges or mass plantings; 5'+ for space between plants Growth Habit / Form: Bushy, Irregular, Upright Growth Rate: Slow or Moderate Flower Color: Yellow Flower Size: Small, 0.5" Flowering Period: Late Winter, Early Spring Flower Type: Single Fragrant Flowers: Yes Foliage Color: Dark Green Fragrant Foliage: No Berries: No Berry Color: NA Sun Needs: Shade or Mostly Shade, All Day Filtered Sun, Morning Sun With Afternoon Shade Water Needs: Very Low when established Soil Type: Clay, Loam, Sandy, Silty Soil Moisture / Drainage: Well Drained Moist Soil pH: 6.0 - 8.0 (Slightly Acid to Slightly Alkaline) Maintenance / Care: Very Low Attracts: Visual Attention Resistances: Deer - more info, Disease, Drought, Heat, Insect Description When first laying eyes on 'Soft Caress' we didn't know this plant was a Mahonia. We thought it might be unique variety of bamboo. Had it been in bloom we would have instantly recognized the genus by the pretty citron-yellow blooms held upright in clusters of "candles" which are typical of Mahonia. When we think of Mahonia, most of us think about holly-like stiff leaves with points on them. But, unlike the poky leaves of other Mahonia varieties, Soft Caress has elongated thread-like, soft-textured leaves that just beg you to touch or "caress" them. In 2012, we picked up a few Soft Caress Mahonia and planted them in a shady spot in our trial gardens. Since then we've been amazed at how hardy and tough such a soft and gentle looking plant has proven itself to be. Neither intense heat or below 10 F temperatures have phased it. It just keeps growing and looks as nice in winter as it does in summer. Landscape & Garden Uses Growing 3 to 4 feet tall and wide, Soft Caress Mahonia is ideal for use as an accent in small, shady garden spaces. Use it in groupings, mass plantings, or as a natural hedge in larger landscape borders and home foundation plantings. A fine addition to shade gardens, yellow theme gardens, cottage gardens, rock, Asian, and tropical look gardens. Consider Creeping Jenny or Vinca minor (Evergreen Periwinkle) as an underplanting. Suggested Spacing: 2.5 apart for solid hedges or mass plantings; 5 feet or more apart for space between plants How To Measure Total Square Feet Of A Planting Area How Many Plants Needed To Cover A Planting Area? Note: For our customers who live and garden North of USDA Cold Hardiness Zone 7a, where this Mahonia variety is not reliably winter hardy, you'll be happy to know it can be grown in containers that can be brought indoors during winter and placed back outside when temperatures warm up in spring. Growing Preferences Soft Caress Mahonia is very easy to grow in most any moist but well-drained soil of average fertility and shade to part shade. Morning sun with afternoon shade is okay, but avoid direct afternoon sun. Very easy to maintain requiring little or no pruning. Plant Long & Prosper! Meet the Wilson Brothers & Staff Questions? Contact Us
