Romeo Cleyera

Romeo Cleyera is a bold evergreen shrub that brings year-round color, structure, and texture to the landscape. This standout variegated cleyera from the Southern Living Plant Collection features leathery dark green leaves edged in buttery golden yellow, creating a polished look that stays attractive through every season.

Also known as Cleyera japonica ‘Variegata’, the Romeo Cleyera plant offers a refined alternative to traditional evergreen hedges. Its dense foliage, upright form, and colorful variegation make it especially useful for hedges, privacy screens, foundation plantings, mixed borders, and large containers.

Romeo adds even more seasonal interest in fall and winter, when the variegated foliage can take on rosy pink to red tones. This color shift gives the shrub extra dimension during cooler months, helping brighten the landscape when many other plants are less active.

This Cleyera Variegata matures to approximately 6 to 8 feet tall and about 6 feet wide, giving it enough size for screening while remaining more manageable than many large privacy shrubs. Its naturally dense habit helps create a full, seamless look when planted in rows, but it is also attractive as a single evergreen accent.

Romeo Cleyera is also valued for being disease-resistant, pest-resistant, heat-tolerant, and low-maintenance once established. Use it anywhere you need a colorful evergreen backdrop, a reliable privacy planting, or a more interesting alternative to standard green hedge shrubs.