Garden: 5 Good Reasons To Plant Helianthemums.
Small plant cousin of the cistus, the helianthemum will seduce you with its generous colorful flowering and ease of maintenance. For those who are not yet familiar with them, we have listed 5 good reasons to plant helianthemums in the garden.
They tolerate drought very well.
As global warming and watering restrictions force gardeners to adapt their practices, it is interesting to select flowering plants that require little or no watering. Helianthemums are among them, and that's the first of the 5 good reasons to adopt them in your garden!
These small plants from the Cistaceae family are cousins of the rockrose and also thrive in dry soils. You can even incorporate them into a dry garden without any watering.
These plants, ranging from 10 to 25 cm in height, are suitable for rock gardens and borders, as well as pots or containers, including on a windy balcony where other more delicate flowers might risk drying out...
2- They require very little maintenance.
The second good reason to adopt helianthems in your garden is their ease of maintenance. As long as they are provided with sun and well-drained, preferably limestone soil, these small plants can resist well, even without any particular care on your part.
Not only do they not need to be watered, but they can also withstand frost and cold temperatures up to -15°C.
Pruning is also optional, although it can be interesting to trim them after flowering to regenerate these plants and give them a compact appearance.
3- Their blooming is generous.
Another of the 5 good reasons to adopt helianthemums in the garden is their generous summer flowering.
From May to August, these plants, which resemble cistus, are covered with small flowers with crumpled petals. Even if the flowers are smaller than those of the cistus, the flowering is abundant and comes in multiple colors depending on the chosen species and variety.
Note: the name helianthemum means "flower of the sun" in Greek, because this flower orients itself towards the sun in the same way as the sunflower!
It may also owe this nickname to the beautiful golden yellow color of the flowers in most species. There are also white, pink, or red-orange varieties. In any case, the small flowers contrast well with the green-gray hue of the foliage.
4- There are many hybrids of it.
The helianthemums that make up the genus Helianthemum come in several species and many hybrids.
The main species are:
• Common helianthemum or nummular helianthemum
• Large-flowered helianthemum
• Syrian helianthemum or lavender-leaved helianthemum
• Apennine helianthemum
• Canary Islands helianthemum
In garden centers, you will find hybrids that offer a wide range of colors, from pure white to cherry red, as well as golden yellow, orange, and subtle shades of pink.
5- They multiply easily.
The last of the 5 good reasons to adopt helianthems in the garden is the possibility of easily multiplying them.
The best method is to make cuttings in a mix of potting soil and sand.
Another significant advantage is that these beautiful flowering plants can be planted all year round. Just buy them in pots or containers and transplant them in a sunny corner of your garden.
