Licorice Strawflower
| Licorice Strawflower | ||||||||||||
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Licorice Strawflower ( Helichrysum petiolare ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Helichrysum petiolare | ||||||||||||
| Hilliard & BLBurtt |
The licorice Helichrysum ( Helichrysum petiolare ) is a plant from the family of the daisy family (Asteraceae).
description
The liquorice straw flower is a bushy, ascending to hanging subshrub or dwarf shrub that reaches heights of 20 to 50 (rarely up to 100) centimeters. The leaves are 1.5 to 2.5 centimeters long, broadly ovate, truncated to almost heart-shaped at the base, white wooly tomentose and later greenish on the upper side. The leaf stalks are 0.5 to 2.5 inches long. The flower heads are 3 to 5 millimeters in diameter. They are arranged in dense panicles up to 2.5 to 7 centimeters wide. The bracts are creamy white. The species rarely blooms.
The flowering time is in September, sometimes it begins as early as August.
Occurrence
The liquorice straw flower occurs in South Africa from the Cape to Natal. It grows on shady lower slopes and on the edges of forests. It was naturalized in Portugal , California and southern Great Britain .
use
The liquorice straw flower is rarely used as an ornamental plant for borders, hanging baskets and tubs as a structure plant. It is usually cultivated as an annual. The species has been in culture since 1719 at the latest. There are several types (selection):
- Aureum ("gold"): The leaves are yellow-green.
- Microphyllum : The leaf blade is gray-green and less than 1 centimeter in diameter.
- Silver : The leaves are silver-green.
- Variegatum : The leaves are gray-green, their edge is creamy white.
supporting documents
- Eckehart Jäger , Friedrich Ebel, Peter Hanelt, Gerd K. Müller (eds.): Rothmaler excursion flora from Germany. Volume 5: Herbaceous ornamental and useful plants . Spectrum Academic Publishing House, Berlin Heidelberg 2008, ISBN 978-3-8274-0918-8 .
