Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Wild Star Apple (Pouteria obovata)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called Wild Star Apple, Northern Yellow Boxwood, Planchonella.

More about wild star apple

About Wild Star Apple

Pouteria obovata · also called Wild Star Apple, Northern Yellow Boxwood · tropical

A tough, slow-growing evergreen Sapotaceae tree native to coastal and secondary forests from the Seychelles through Southeast Asia to northern Australia. Thrives in full sun with excellent drainage and tolerates salt spray and poor soils. Rarely cultivated commercially; grown primarily as an ornamental or for its small, edible berries and durable timber.

Cold limit: USDA 10b–12 · RHS H1a (15–35 °C)

What wild star apple's hardiness rating actually means

Wild Star Apple is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Its RHS rating of H1a means: Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever. On the US scale that maps to USDA 10b–12 — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Wild Star Apple has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

Concretely, for wild star apple as it gets too cold:

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches.
A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover.
Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.

Can wild star apple go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually.
Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C.
It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when wild star apple can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H1a figure above.

Wild Star Apple hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is wild star apple cold hardy?

Wild Star Apple is not cold hardy. It is a tropical houseplant that dies if it is left out through frost — there is no zone where it overwinters outdoors in a UK or cold-US climate. Indoor-only in almost every home. Wild Star Apple can only live outside year-round in genuinely frost-free climates (roughly USDA 10b–12); everywhere else it is a houseplant that summers out at most.

What is the minimum temperature wild star apple can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly above about 15 °C (warm, never cold). Wild Star Apple has no frost tolerance at all — it is an indoor plant in any climate with a real winter.

What hardiness zone is wild star apple?

Wild Star Apple is rated USDA 10b–12 and RHS H1a — Tropical — needs a heated room or greenhouse; no frost tolerance whatsoever.

Can wild star apple survive winter outside?

It can holiday outdoors in summer once nights are reliably above above 15 °C, in shade or dappled light, hardened off gradually. Bring it back indoors well before the first autumn frost — do not wait for a frost warning, move it when nights drop toward 10-12 °C. It will never overwinter outside in a temperate climate; the indoors is its winter home, full stop.

What happens to wild star apple below its minimum temperature?

Below about above about 15 °C, growth stalls and the leaves start to show cold stress — dark, water-soaked, or yellowing patches. A single light frost blackens the foliage; a hard freeze kills the whole plant, roots included, and it does not recover. Even a cold, draughty windowsill or an unheated porch in winter can be enough to damage it permanently.