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Roman Candle® Podocarpus – 3 Gallon
Roman Candle® Podocarpus – 3 Gallon
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Podocarpus macrophyllus ‘Miu’ PP28582
Bring bright, elegant evergreen structure to the landscape with Roman Candle® Podocarpus, a striking variegated Japanese yew featuring creamy white to light-green new growth that matures to rich green. Its naturally upright, narrow habit makes it especially useful where you want height and privacy without taking up excessive width.
Roman Candle combines the timeless look of Podocarpus with lighter foliage that gives the landscape a fresh, designer feel. It is also known for strong heat tolerance and good resistance to deer, pests, and disease.
Plant at a Glance
Botanical Name: Podocarpus macrophyllus ‘Miu’ PP28582
Common Name: Roman Candle® Podocarpus
Container Size: 3 Gallon
Plant Type: Upright evergreen shrub
Annual or Perennial: Perennial
Evergreen or Deciduous: Evergreen
USDA Hardiness Zones: 7b–10b
Mature Height: Approximately 10–15 feet tall
Mature Width: Approximately 3–4 feet wide
Growth Habit: Upright, narrow and columnar
Growth Rate: Slow to moderate
Sunlight: Full sun to part shade
Water Needs: Moderate
Foliage: Creamy white to light-green new growth maturing to deep green
Flowers: Inconspicuous; not grown for flowers
Bloom Season: No significant ornamental bloom season
Primary Features: Variegated foliage, narrow habit, year-round structure, deer resistance, heat tolerance
Why We Love Roman Candle
Roman Candle gives you the clean, architectural look of traditional Podocarpus with a much lighter and more interesting foliage color.
New growth emerges white to pale green, creating bright highlights along the stems before maturing to a richer green. The effect is particularly beautiful when Roman Candle is planted beside darker evergreens or used as a repeating hedge.
Its narrow mature width also makes it an excellent option beside patios, fences, entrances, and areas where a traditional broad screening shrub would become too large.
Sunlight Requirements
Roman Candle performs in:
Full sun to part shade
Southern Living lists it for full sun through partial shade and notes that it tolerates Southern heat well.
Wright’s Market Recommendation
In southeast Georgia, we recommend:
Morning sun through bright filtered light, or full sun where irrigation is available during establishment.
More light generally helps maintain strong variegation, while some afternoon protection can be beneficial in extremely hot, reflected-heat locations.
Watering
Immediately After Planting
Water thoroughly after planting so the entire root ball and surrounding soil are evenly moist.
First Growing Season
Water deeply approximately 1–2 times per week, adjusting for:
- Rainfall
- Temperature
- Soil type
- Sun exposure
Newly planted 3-gallon shrubs may require additional water during periods of extreme summer heat.
Once Established
Roman Candle has moderate water needs.
Water deeply during extended dry periods and allow the soil to drain between waterings.
Avoid keeping the root system constantly saturated.
Fertilization
Fertilize in early spring before the first major flush of new growth.
Use a balanced, slow-release shrub and tree fertilizer according to package directions. The technical grower guidance for Roman Candle recommends slow-release fertilizer and early-spring pruning.
For established plants growing well, one spring feeding is generally sufficient.
Avoid excessive fertilizer, which may encourage soft growth and increase pruning needs.
Planting Instructions
- Water the plant thoroughly before planting.
- Choose a location with full sun to part shade.
- Dig a hole approximately twice as wide as the root ball, but no deeper.
- Carefully remove the plant from its 3-gallon container.
- Gently loosen tightly circling roots.
- Position the plant so the top of the root ball sits level with or slightly above the surrounding soil.
- Backfill using the existing soil.
- Water deeply to remove air pockets.
- Apply approximately 1–2 inches of pine straw or mulch.
- Keep mulch pulled slightly away from the main stems.
Soil
Roman Candle prefers:
Well-drained soil
Moderately fertile garden soil
Slightly acidic soil
Grower guidance places the preferred soil pH around 5.5–6.5.
Good drainage is especially important. Avoid locations where water remains standing around the roots.
Pruning & Maintenance
Roman Candle naturally develops a vertical, narrow form, so it generally requires less pruning than broad-growing screening shrubs.
If shaping is necessary, prune in early spring before the first flush of growth.
It can be maintained as:
- A natural upright specimen
- A narrow hedge
- A formal screen
- A clipped foundation accent
For a more sophisticated landscape, allow some of its natural branching habit to remain rather than repeatedly shearing it into a hard rectangle.
Does Roman Candle Flower?
Podocarpus can produce small reproductive structures, but Roman Candle is not grown for ornamental flowers.
There is no significant showy bloom season.
Its primary ornamental value comes from:
Variegated evergreen foliage
Upright form
Year-round structure
Evergreen or Deciduous?
Evergreen.
Roman Candle retains its foliage throughout the year, giving the landscape permanent height and structure.
The light-colored new growth creates additional seasonal interest even though the plant itself remains evergreen.
Zone 9 / Coastal Georgia Performance
Roman Candle is extremely well suited to Zone 8b/9a landscapes in southeast Georgia.
It is hardy through USDA Zones 7b–10b and is specifically noted for tolerating full sun and heat.
For best performance in our area:
- Water consistently during the first growing season.
- Provide well-drained soil.
- Mulch the root zone.
- Give adequate sunlight for strong variegation.
- Avoid planting in constantly wet soil.
Once established, it is a durable choice for Southern landscapes.
Deer, Pest & Disease Resistance
One of Roman Candle's strongest practical advantages is its durability.
Southern Living describes it as offering notable resistance to:
Deer
Common pests
Disease
No plant is completely deer-proof, but Roman Candle is a strong option for landscapes where deer browsing is a recurring concern.
Landscape Uses
Roman Candle is especially beautiful as a:
- Privacy screen
- Narrow hedge
- Foundation accent
- Entryway planting
- Property-line screen
- Pool landscape
- Patio screen
- Specimen shrub
- Evergreen backdrop
- Formal garden accent
Its mature dimensions of approximately 10–15 feet tall by 3–4 feet wide make it especially useful where vertical screening is needed but horizontal space is limited.
Spacing
For individual specimens, allow approximately 3–4 feet of mature width.
For a continuous narrow hedge or privacy screen, Southern Living recommends approximately 2½–3 feet on center when a faster knit-together effect is desired.
Remember that this plant becomes tall even though it stays relatively narrow.
Beautiful Plant Pairings
Roman Candle's creamy new growth looks especially beautiful against darker foliage.
Pair it with:
Evergreen Structure
Soft Touch® Holly
Vintage Jade® Distylium
Babylon Beauty™ Boxwood
Pringles Dwarf Podocarpus
Color & Contrast
Purple Pixie® Loropetalum
Cerise Charm™ Loropetalum
White Encore® Azaleas
Gardenias
Hydrangeas
Lower-Growing Texture
Carex ‘Everillo’
Feather Falls Carex
Liriope
Asiatic Jasmine
Wright’s Market Designer Combination
Try:
Roman Candle Podocarpus + Soft Touch Holly + white flowering shrubs + Purple Pixie Loropetalum + chartreuse Carex
Roman Candle provides the vertical element, while the lower shrubs create layers of deep green, purple, chartreuse, and white.
The result feels polished and Southern without being overly formal.
Why Wright’s Market Loves It
We love Roman Candle® Podocarpus because it takes one of the South's most useful evergreen shrubs and gives it a fresh, updated look.
It provides:
Evergreen year-round structure
Creamy-white and green variegation
A narrow mature footprint
Excellent height for screening
Heat tolerance
Good deer, pest, and disease resistance
Low maintenance
For customers who need privacy but want something lighter and more interesting than a solid dark-green hedge, Roman Candle is an excellent choice.
Wright’s Market Plant Tip
Roman Candle grows tall but relatively narrow.
Plan for approximately 10–15 feet of mature height and only 3–4 feet of width. That makes it especially useful beside patios, along fences, and in narrow landscape beds where a broad-growing screening shrub would take up too much space.
Please note: Plant height, fullness, variegation, and overall appearance vary according to season and growing conditions. A 3-gallon Roman Candle Podocarpus is a young landscape plant and will continue developing toward its mature size after planting.
