Euonymus japonicus

South Australia's Plant Selector gives full sun to part shade and moderate supplementary watering, lists it for sites from the coast and coastal dunes to the hills, and says it can be planted in coastal locations. The RHS rates it H5, hardy to between -15 and -10 C in the United Kingdom, and gives clay, loam, sand or chalk, moist but well drained. On wet ground the references differ: the North Carolina toolbox says it does poorly in wet conditions, while the RHS lists it among its plants for both wet and dry conditions, coping with wet winters and summer dry. The RHS and the North Carolina toolbox call it drought tolerant, and the toolbox moderately tolerant of salt spray and able to withstand heavy pruning. The Missouri Plant Finder adds that it may reach 7.6 m in the wild, and the North Carolina toolbox 7.9 m if left alone. The American references name euonymus scale and powdery mildew among its troubles; no Australian reference read lists any pest.

The Selector lists it as an informal hedge or screen that can also be clipped tightly into formal shapes, and the American references for hedges, foundations and specimen planting. For a clipped hedge, the HortOS guide to what a hedge costs gives the spacing its calculator uses at each pot size. Growers list it under its named forms, Green Rocket and Tom Thumb, as well as under the species name, and each form has its own page.

Euonymus japonicus is an exotic: the Australian Plant Census lists it only as doubtfully naturalised in South Australia, and a South Australian government review of recent plant naturalisations gave it medium priority for weed risk assessment, on one herbarium specimen. Read the label for the form, since the species, Green Rocket, Tom Thumb and variegated forms are sold under the same name, and the North Carolina toolbox notes that variegated forms tend to revert to green. Stock crossing a state border travels under the state and territory biosecurity rules on moving plants and soil.

The North Carolina toolbox lists every part as poisonous to people, of low severity, when eaten in large quantities, and the RHS marks it harmful if eaten by people and pets.