Illustration
Winter Daphne
Daphne odora
Also called fragrant daphne and japan daphne
Also comes in purple, white and red.
Winter Daphne blooms from March through April.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Winter Daphne
Plant it in part shade. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 7–9. Expect it to reach about 4.5 ft tall and 3.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 4 years (a house reading).
Is Winter Daphne toxic to dogs or cats?
- Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by Pet Poison Helpline and Royal Horticultural Society.
- Listed as poisonous to people by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Winter Daphne
Plant Winter Daphne in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 8, the middle of its hardy zones 7 to 9, spring means February to April and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms from March to April.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 8, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 8 in February. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Winter Daphne get?
4.5 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult3.5 ftwideSee Winter Daphne in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Winter Daphne
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Winter Daphne about 3.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Winter Daphne to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Winter Daphne's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 8 published sources on October 19, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical Gardenheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State ExtensionGardener Plant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- Oregon State UniversityLandscape Plantsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
- jcra.ncsu.eduJC Raulston Arboretum, profile 7height, spread, sun, bloom months and color and trait tags
- burncoose.co.ukBurncoose Nurseriesheight, spread, bloom months and color and trait tags
- University of Florida IFASUF/IFAS Extension Nassau Countyheight, spread, hardiness zones and bloom months and color
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societywater and bloom months and color
- jcra.ncsu.eduJC Raulston Arboretum, profile 72bloom months and color
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
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Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.