[John J]

A couple of years ago I bought 4 small Styrax from one of the Forestry Dept nurseries. This is the first of them to flower. Styrax is native to Cyprus and is widespread through much of the Mediterranean region. It's a deciduous shrub/small tree with fragrant flowers that grows from 0-1300m alt. I haven't seen it used much as an ornamental in Cyprus gardens which seems a shame.

[Alice]

What a delightful plant, John! Another little-known gem - and a native of the Med, too. Worth trying from seed perhaps.
In "Wild Flowers of the Mediterranean" by M. Blamey and C. Grey-Wilson its habitat is given as "open woodland, thickets, river margins". Do you find it requires shade/watering?

[John J]

Alice,
As I said I have 4 plants all sited in different areas of the garden, 2 in dry areas, where they get little or no water during the summer, and 2 that are on the fringes of irrigation for fruit trees. The latter 2 have grown a little more than the others but none of them get much water at all. They are also in full sun for large parts of the day.
They grow in a variety of habitats here in Cyprus as your reference suggests. From pre-desert scrub to cypress and pine forests with everything in between. The Forestry Dept propagate theirs from seed so if you can get hold of any it would be well worth trying.
It has been around a long time, seeds were found in the 4th century BC ruins of Salamis (now in the occupied north). Pliny (23-79 AD) mentions the styrax resin obtained from several regions; "...from Pisidia, Side, Cyprus and Cilicia, and that from Crete is rated lowest; that from Mount Amanus in Syria is valued by the medical profession, but even more by perfumers".
The fruit is a globose drupe, 1-1.5 cm across, and these were crushed and used to kill hair lice. The pulped fruit were also used as a narcotic agent to stun eels in the mountain streams so that they would be easier to catch.
So, you see as the old saying goes; 'it's not just a pretty face'.

[Alice]

Thanks, John, for the information and the interesting and amusing background - not just a pretty face, indeed!
Its drought-tolerance makes it an ideal candidate for a Cycladic garden. I am pretty sure I will not find a plant in the local nurseries but I noticed that Chantal has it on her MGS seed list.

[MikeHardman]

Interesting info John.

Maybe it is just me, but this seems to be a good year for Styrax blossom.
Perhaps that's due to the colder winter - giving better initiation of flower buds.
For me, in the west of Cyprus, it tends to occur in slightly cooler spots - north facing and maybe with better access to natural water (springs below Akourdalia, eg.)

[John J]

Mine are very young and this is the first year that they have flowered so I have no previous info to go on. Although the books say they occur from 0-1300m, I can't actually recall seeing many at lower altitudes in the wild, usually come across them in the forested areas higher up. So, as you suggest, they may prefer the cooler locations. Mine are doing ok so far in the heat but time will tell.

[Alisdair]

There's a lovely older one at the MGS Garden in Sparoza, low altitude near Attica coast on mainland Greece, which is flowering beautifully at the moment.

[Fleur Pavlidis]

See http://www.mediterraneangardensociety.org/sparoza-diary.html in April 2008 for more Styrax tales.
To agree with all the above, the Styrax at Sparoza has never bloomed so well and thrives without a drop of water. I've tried taking cuttings this year but it was too late I fear.

[John J]

Two of our larger bushes are full of flowers now following a winter in which we have had little or no rain to speak of falling on our property and very little on the island as a whole.

[Umbrian]

After all these positive comments I am hoping to add a Styrax to my new garden. I take it that you are all talking about Styrax officinalis? ......in the RHS Encyclopaedia  of Plants  one variety - Styrax obassia is also referred to as 'Fragrant snowbell' , does this mean it has a stronger perfume I wonder?