Sarcococca Winter Gem Plants - Outdoor GROW TROPICALS
Sweet Box (Christmas Box), Winter Gem

Sarcococca Winter Gem

£14.99
Hardy in the UKShade-tolerantEvergreenLoved by pollinators
Pot size
17cm / 2L £14.99

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Description

Sarcococca Winter Gem, also known as sweet box or Christmas box, is a compact evergreen shrub grown for one unforgettable trick: tiny cream flowers that fill the winter garden with an intense honey and vanilla scent. A refined member of the Buxaceae family, this hardy exotic forms a neat, rounded mound of glossy dark green leaves flushed with coppery new growth, making it one of the most useful winter-flowering shrubs for shade you can plant.

Fully hardy across the UK, Sarcococca Winter Gem earns its place through the leanest months. From January to March the small white flowers open along the stems and perfume the air far beyond their size, followed by glossy black berries. The foliage stays evergreen and lustrous all year, so the plant never has an off season. For a fuller picture of how hardy exotics perform through the seasons, read our guide on what to expect.

How and where to grow

  • Position: Thrives in partial or full shade, including tricky dry shade beneath trees. It tolerates full sun only where the soil stays reliably moist, which makes this sweet box a superb choice among plants for shade.
  • Soil: Any humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil. Unlike many scented evergreens it does not need ericaceous soil and happily tolerates chalk and alkaline ground.
  • Size: Compact and slow growing, reaching around 1 to 1.5m in height and spread over several years, which makes it ideal for low hedging and for growing in pots.
  • Hardiness: Fully hardy (RHS H5), shrugging off temperatures down to around -15C once established.

Water regularly through the first year or two so the roots settle in, then this winter-flowering shrub for shade is remarkably self-reliant. Plant it by a door, path or gate where you brush past in winter and the Christmas box scent will stop you in your tracks. It works beautifully in exotic borders, as a low informal hedge, or as an early nectar source that supports bees and pollinators when little else is in flower.

Every Sarcococca Winter Gem is nursery grown here in the UK and hand selected for a strong, bushy shape, ready to bring winter scent to your garden for years to come.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

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What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

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How to care for Sweet Box (Christmas Box), Winter Gem

Give me sun with a little shade and I will stand a UK winter outdoors.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
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About Sweet Box (Christmas Box), Winter Gem

Sarcococca Winter Gem needs partial shade or full shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is hardy to around −15°C and stands a UK winter outdoors.

Good for

Exotic Borders Pots & Containers Shade Wildlife & Pollinators

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

Hardy Exotic (H5): down to around −15°C. Hardy through a cold UK winter.

Fully hardy in the UK (RHS H5), tolerant to around -15C once established. Read moreShow less

Fully hardy in the UK (RHS H5), tolerant to around -15C once established.

Position

Partial shadeFull shadeNorth-facingEast-facingWest-facingExposedSheltered
Happiest in partial or full shade, including dry shade. Tolerates full sun only where the soil stays reliably moist. Read moreShow less

Happiest in partial or full shade, including dry shade. Tolerates full sun only where the soil stays reliably moist.

Soil

ChalkClayLoamSandMoist but well-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH
Any moderately fertile, humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil. Tolerates chalk and clay and does not need ericaceous compost. Read moreShow less

Any moderately fertile, humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil. Tolerates chalk and clay and does not need ericaceous compost.

Watering

Water regularly through the first one to two years so the roots establish, keeping pots and dry shade positions from drying out. Mulch in spring. Read moreShow less

Water regularly through the first one to two years so the roots establish, keeping pots and dry shade positions from drying out. Mulch in spring.

Mature size

Height1-1.5 m
Spread1-1.5 m

Reaches full size in 5-10 years

Growth habit

Bushy

Flowering

Jan-Mar

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Evergreen

Pruning

Flowers in winter on an evergreen frame, so needs little work — just shorten wayward shoots and lightly tidy the shape after flowering in early spring, never cutting into bare old wood.

Toxicity

The glossy black berries are considered mildly toxic if eaten and are best kept away from children and pets. The plant is otherwise low risk and handling causes no known irritation.

Native range

Himalaya, W. China

Family

Buxaceae

Also known as

Sarcococca Winter Gem

Genus

Sarcococca
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the best place to plant Sarcococca Winter Gem?

Sarcococca Winter Gem is happiest in partial or full shade, including the dry shade beneath trees or along a shaded wall. Plant it close to a path, door or gate where you brush past in winter so you can enjoy the powerful scent, and explore our other plants for shade for planting companions.

Does Sarcococca need ericaceous compost?

No. Sarcococca does not need ericaceous compost and grows well in most soils, including chalk and alkaline ground. It simply prefers a humus-rich, moist but well-drained soil, so add garden compost or leaf mould when planting.

Is Sarcococca Winter Gem fragrant?

Yes, remarkably so. The tiny cream white flowers appear from January to March and release a powerful honey and vanilla fragrance that carries several metres on a still winter day, which is why the plant is also known as sweet box.

Is Sarcococca poisonous to dogs?

Sarcococca is considered a low risk plant, but the glossy black berries are best not eaten by dogs, other pets or children as they may cause a mild stomach upset. Handling the foliage causes no known irritation.

Can Sarcococca be grown in pots?

Yes, Sarcococca Winter Gem grows very well in containers. Use a loam based compost such as John Innes No.3, keep it watered in dry spells, and stand the pot by a doorway or seating area to enjoy the winter scent. Discover more plants for pots to pair with it.

How big does Sarcococca Winter Gem get and how fast?

Sarcococca Winter Gem is compact and slow to moderate growing, reaching around 1 to 1.5m in both height and spread over roughly 5 to 10 years. Its neat, bushy habit makes it well suited to low informal hedging and edging.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 7 days with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
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Packaged with Care

Every order is hand-packed in eco-friendly, protective packaging - refined through thousands of deliveries to ensure your plant arrives healthy, hydrated, and looking its best.

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Perfect for Gifting

From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

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Sustainability at Heart

All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

Good for your home - and the planet.

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£14.99