Endemic to Australia, this compact evergreen shrub is also known as silver senna, wormwood senna and silver cassia. It is in the pea family, Fabaceae that also includes beans, lupine and mimosa. Plants grow 4-10′ tall and have finely divided gray-green pinnate leaves with 1-8 pairs of needle-like, l” long leaflets. From mid-winter to early spring clusters of 2-6 yellow flowers .5″ in diameter appear in the leaf axils and are followed by lime green seed pods .8-1.75″ long that turn dark brown when dry. The plants are tolerant of drought and coastal conditions and are an outstanding choice for a xersicape, border, hedge, or coastal garden. The genus name, Senna, is the Latin form of an Arabic word for a thorny bush. The specific epithet, artemisioides, is the Latin word meaning resembling Artemisia, a different group of plants in the aster family and known as wormwood.
Type: Flowering evergreen shrub
Outstanding Feature: Long bloom time
Form: Rounded
Growth Rate: Rapid
Bloom: Clusters of yellow pea-like flowers from mid winter to early spring
Size: 4-10’H x 4-10′ W
Light:Full sun
Soil: Lean-average, dry, well-drained
Hardiness: Zones 8-10
Care: Prune back after flowering to encourage bushiness and remove unornamental seed podsl.
Pests and Diseases: None of significance
Propagation: Seed (after brief immersion in boiling water), cuttings
Photo Credit: Wikipedia
Karen Meyers