Senecio barbertonicus
Water Needs
low; moderate
Succulent; Shrub small
Succulent Bush Senecio
1 - 1,5 m
Size
Light Conditions
sun; semi-shade
Frost
Light; moderate
Flowers
Yellow; winter summer
Garden Situation
Sun; Light shade; semi-shade; rockery; screen; dry soils; sandy soils; walls; slope bank; wildlife insects butterflies
Habitat
cliffs; grassland; bushveld;
Region
highveld; subtropical east coast; bushveld savanna
Rain Season
Summer
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Description
A lovely succulent shrub that comes into its own in winter, adding lime green foliage and acid yellow flowers for insects and gardeners. The Bush Senecio forms a neat, rounded shrub between 1 and 1,5 m high, with long, slim, upward-reaching cylindrical leaves. Multiple stems branch from low-down from a single woody stem. From winter to summer, tiny flowers cluster in groups at the branch tips. The growth rate is moderate to fast, and the shrub requires well-draining soils. Water to establish the plant, and, for the most part, it should not need supplementary watering except in a prolonged drought. Use it at the back of a rockery, perennial bed, to stabilize banks, and in the wildlife garden. It does well in coastal and inland gardens.