Variegated Pittosporum plant

#The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of pittosporum plant of the variety Pittosporum tobira, which originated and was discovered by me as a cultivated sport of the variety known as "Wheeler's dwarf". The sport was discovered by me on a Pittosporum tobira "Wheeler's dwarf" being grown and cultivated by me in a nursery in Corpus Christi, Tex. Upon discovery of the sport, I observed that the leaves of the sport, unlike the dark green leaves of the parent plant, were variegated and were medium green in color with pale yellow margins. In order to determine whether or not the sport would asexually reproduce, I performed an initial experiment wherein I made five cuttings from the sport, and from such five cuttings I was able to asexually reproduce four plants on their own roots, all of which plants had the same characteristics as the sport, and all four of which constituted a new and distinct variety of pittosporum. In the initial experiment, the fifth cutting did not survive.

#Subsequent to the initial experiment, in due course I asexually reproduced numerous of the new and distinct variety of pittosporum from other cuttings of the original sport, as well as from cuttings from the four first generation plants grown in the initial experiment described above, and all of the descendant plants show the same characteristics as the original sport. As a result of extensive observations and tests which are not described in full herein for sake of brevity, it is my opinion and I am convinced that my new plant is a new variety of pittosporum which is distinguished from all other varieties of which I am aware as evidenced by the following unique combination of principlal characteristics which are outstanding therein:

#(1) A dwarf and compact habit of growth makes it especially suitable as a border plant, as a small hedge, in planter boxes and as a pot plant;

#The accompanying drawing shows a typical young specimen plant of my new variety and the variegated nature and color of the leaves thereof. Even though the plant illustrated is young, the leaves are mature leaves and the colors shown are the colors for the mature leaves and are not the colors for new leaves hereafter described. The true color of the foliage is described in the following description and is best depicted by the views in the drawings which depict the color as nearly as true as is reasonably possible in a color illustration of this type.

#The following is a detailed description of my new variety of pittosporum, with color numbers in accordance with the Pantone Matching System of colors for printing inks, 16th edition, published by Pantone, Inc., 1977. Terms used to describe colors are those of ordinary significance.

#Parentage: A cultivated sport of "Wheeler's dwarf" variety of Pittosporum tobira.

#Growth habit: Compact, dwarf, slow growing; the height of an unpruned mature plant will probably be from about 1.5 to 2 meters, but has not yet been determined. The plant grows full from just above ground level upward, with the width of the plant about the same as the height.