The Paperbush Plant, otherwise known as the Edgeworthia Chrysantha or Paperbush, Paper Bush, Oriental Paper Bush, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its average maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its silver-green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, taking care of your Paperbush Plant is not too difficult – as long as you follow our guidelines in this Paperbush Plant Care Guide. Now let’s get started.
The basic care guidelines you need to remember for your Paperbush Plant are the following:
- Water: The Paperbush Plant needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
- Light: Keep your Edgeworthia Chrysantha in an environment where it can receive full shade to partial sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Paperbush Plant in soil with moist but well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of loam.
And that’s practically it! If you keep these three factors in check, your Paperbush Plant will likely have all it needs for it to survive and even thrive.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Paperbush Plant belongs to the Thymelaeaceae family, the genus Edgeworthia and the species Chrysantha, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Edgeworthia Chrysantha (edj-WOR-thee-uh kris-ANTH-uh).
As with other Edgeworthia’s, the Paperbush Plant is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
The Paperbush Plant is a plant native to China.
You might be wondering why your Paperbush Plant’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Edgeworthia Chrysantha will be most used to the heat zones in the 8 – 10 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 7b, 7a, 8b, 8a, 9b, 9a and the ideal climate zone is between 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Paperbush Plant is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Paperbush Plant actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Edgeworthia Chrysantha can grow up to 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm) in 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm) and 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm) in 4′ – 6′ (120cm – 180cm).
These dimensions make the Paperbush Plant a relatively large shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful rounded shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 48″ – 72″ (120cm – 180cm) free so the Paperbush Plant can spread to its best extent.
Watering
In terms of watering, the Paperbush Plant is a fairly complicated plant to take care of. This is mostly because it has a not so straightforward watering schedule and somewhat irregular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Edgeworthia Chrysantha needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Paperbush Plant in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Paperbush Plant since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
The Paperbush Plant’s ideal soil potting mix is made out of loam.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Paperbush Plant requires full shade to partial sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Edgeworthia Chrysantha in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Paperbush Plant will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes. But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (early), and during the winter.
Flowers
You can expect your Paperbush Plant to flower around the winter months from January to March (winter). In particular, this shrub is well known for its long bloom season, fragrant and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Paperbush Plant produces some beautiful yellow, gold and orange flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Paperbush Plant have a beautiful silver-green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with an alternate organization in its leaves.
Garden
Does your Paperbush Plant have any garden recommendations? Does it serve any gardening purposes? Here’s how you can get the most out of your new plant.
Most Edgeworthia Chrysantha owners agree that this shrub will look great in most asian/zen and contemporary gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of coastal garden, city and courtyard, and in informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Paperbush Plant’s best location within your garden is in patio and containers, beds and borders, and in wall-side borders, others use it for landscaping in a specimen, mass planting, or a woodland garden.
Conclusion
So that’s it! These are the main plant care requirements that you need to keep in mind in order to have a healthy Paperbush Plant in your garden or home.
