A note from the Kumamoto International botany desk:

A note from the Kumamoto International botany desk:

It is that season again when the whole neighborhood smells like bubblegum! What could it be? Look around a bit and you’ll find an unassuming evergreen festooned with thousands of tiny orange blossoms. This is the fragrant olive (kinmokusei, 金木犀 - or, if white, the ginmokusei 銀木犀 - not actually related to the olive). Japanese gardeners are careful to cultivate plants which invite enjoyment in every season, and the pervasive, delightful fragrance of the fragrant olive stretches from late September through October.

Kanji fans might have noticed that 犀 is normally pronounced “sai” in Japanese and means rhinoceros. The name derives from China, where apparently the bark of the plant was considered to resemble the skin of the rhino (the Javan rhinoceros used to range through southern China but is now on the verge of extinction with only some 60 animals left).

The tree is relatively unattractive, but the fragrance is heavenly and a harbinger of autumn. Enjoy it while it lasts! - William https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmanthus_fragrans