Tim..... that looks a fairly large shrub. What species is it? I was under the impression that Illiciums are a bit on the tender side min Zone8 plants :scratch: They are great plants and I have Illicium Henryi. Can't say that mine has drooped like that but the Daphniphyllums I have do.

Hi Andy,

I have two different Illiciums......a white flower and a reddish flower. Both have done great in my yard since I planted them in 2004.

Here's a couple June 9, 2004 photos of them when I planted them:
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Here's a few update photos......the red is on the left of the Yucca and the white is on the right of the Yucca. The white is about 8 feet tall now and the red is smaller but the trunk was broke by snow loads a few years ago:
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Tim, the leaves on my Aucubas are doing the same thing with these cold temps right now. I brushed up against them by accident, and some leaves fell right off 😡

Hi Cameron

Keep us updated on your Aucubas......your pushing their limits!

Do they smell nice when they are blooming?

Really good looking shrubs Tim ...you certainly have green fingers. The red one looks like Illicium Floridata.
Aucuba are hardy here but in cold temps the leaves go limp like Tim's Illicium.

Hi Jim,

the whole plant of Illicium smells like a spice.......not sure how to explain it. They do have great looking flowers and bloom 2x per season here. I'll try to make some rooted cuttings this spring.......I tried a couple times with no success yet......I may have to look up how to root Illiciums.....any tips anyone??

The Illiciums actually seed here and I have a few seedlings growing under the mother plants. If they get bigger this spring I can dig them up!......not sure of their flower color.......perhaps a hybrid mix?

Hi Andy,

I'm not sure of exact ID of these Illiciums..........they are hardy here! They do form seed here.....if interested let me know and I'll try to harvest some in June-ish. Most of the pods don't seem to have seeds in them but I did find a couple seedlings growing under the mother so there must be a few seeds!

Tim... I would love some seeds if you can harvest any 😀 Sorry no tips on propogation but they are related to Magnolia I believe so not easy.

I'll watch out for seed Andy. 😉

the Illiciums look fine after this cold winter

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It's healthy looking shrub, Tim! Sorry for your monkey tree... It should be covered with some sun protection cloth, shouldn't it?

Hi Igor

yes my MP tree needs some winter sun/wind protection on the coldest nights. It does have some browning. -6.5F (-21.4C) is pushing their limits.