Pittosporum is one of many evergreen trees or shrubs primarily native to New Zealand and Australia, making up the Pittosporaceae family’s Pittosporum genus.
Also known as Australian Laurel, Pittosporum is mainly planted as ornamental plants in temperate regions. The most popular species, known as Tobira or domestic flowering pseudo-orange (Pittosporum tobira), originates from Japan and China.
It is a fragrant hedge plant popular in hot climates and a pretty houseplant elsewhere. The Pittosporum genus includes about 200 species[1] of flowering plants. The species are shrubs and trees with a height of 2 to 30 m. The leaves are arranged in a spiral or swirl, with a wavy or entire margin.
The flowers are formed individually or in corymbs or umbels, each flower with 5 sepals and 5 petals. The flowers are usually quite fragrant and range from creamy yellow to white, purple to dark red.