Pieris japonica
Common Name: Japanese pieris, mistakenly called Andromeda
Family: Ericaceae

EVERGREEN

Photo: Wadsworth Estate, Middletown, CT

Plant is Native to: Japan, Taiwan and some parts of eastern China. Hardy to zone
Plant Height at maturity: 6 to 8 feet tall, spread almost as wide
Plant Habit and Form: broadleaf evergreen shrub with upright and spreading branching habit, rounded shape and dense foliage.

Photo: Wadsworth Estate, Middletown, CT

Foliage: leaves are glossy green, 1½ to 3½ inches long, ½ to 3/4 inch wide. Leaf margins are slightly serrated, and leaves are clustered in whorls at the tips. Emerging leaves are reddish.

Photo: Hill-Stead Museum, Farmington, CT

Bark: Gray-brown, with light vertical fissures.
Flower: Small, white urn-shaped flowers, 1/4 inch long, held on 3 to 6 inch clusters. Bloom in March or April, lasting 2 to 3 weeks. Flower buds persist through fall and winter, and are red.

Photos: Wadsworth Estate, Middletown, CT

Fruit/Seed: Small, rounded dehiscent capsules. Not particularly desirable or attractive.
Growing Requirements: Prefers moist, well-drained acidic soil; partial shade but tolerates some sun. Keep protected from wind.
Problems and Drawbacks: Susceptible to lacebug, especially in hot dry spots, which sucks the juice from leaves causing yellow, stippled leaves); phytophthora root rot is also a problem. Also, florida was scale, two-spotted mite and nematodes. Leaves can suffer winter dessication in zone 5, and flower buds can freeze over winter.
Special Uses: Shrub border or foundation; deer resistant and shade loving.
ID Tips/Remarks: an early bloomer, with broad evergreen leaves; flower buds persist over winter.
Bibliography:
http://www.hort.uconn.edu/plants/p/piejap/piejap1.html