Search Fact Sheets Virginia Tech Dendrology

Japanese pieris Ericaceae Pieris japonica (Thunb.) D. Don ex G. Don Listen to the Latin Print a QR link to this factsheet symbol: PIJA3
Leaf: Alternate, simple, oblong to lanceolate, finely serrated margin, evergreen, leathery, 1 1/2 to 3 inches long, dark, shiny green above, paler below.
Flower: White, 1/4 inch long, urn-shaped, in long (3 to 6 inches) hanging clusters, appearing in spring.
Fruit: Dry, small (1/4 inch), 5-parted capsules, ripens in late summer persist through the winter.
Twig: Moderate, green, leaves cluster near branch tips, look for pre-formed flower buds, new growth is reddish.
Bark: Reddish brown and very scaly and split.
Form: Dense, upright shrub to 10 feet tall, round crown.
 Looks like: mountain pieris - mountain laurel

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Additional Range Information: Pieris japonica is planted in the USDA hardiness zones shown above and is not known to widely escape cultivaton. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material 2021 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information