Spartium junceum
Spanish broom, Weaver's broom, Retamo macho, Broom absolute
- Height × spread
- 3m × 2m
- Position
- Full sun
- Hardiness
- Cold to -15C (RHS H5)
- Flowers
- Summer
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
This is grown for its green stems and masses of pea-like yellow flowers in summer and early autumn. The flowers have a fresh orange perfume. The plant is spindly and upright with few leaves, the flowers are borne on attractively coloured bright green stems. It makes a bright, airy contribution to the garden and is beautiful when planted beside water. Seemingly, in Elizabethan times, the plant was used as an emetic. However, if you don't have these little local difficulties, you can instead make baskets from its stems, as well as a fibre that can be woven. A yellow dye is derived from the flowers. Even the very slightest of touches to the base of the flower, such as that of an insect landing, causes the stamens to jump forward, discharging the pollen in a visible little puff.
- Flower colour
- Yellow
- Foliage colour
- Green
- Stem colour
- Green
- Fruit colour
- Black
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- Yes, orange
- Shape
- Fan
- Height
- 3m
- Spread
- 2m
- Season of interest
- Summer, Autumn
- Flowers in
- Summer
- Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Garden style
- Seaside garden, Scented garden, Mediterranean garden, Gravel garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun
- Soil type
- All types
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Well drained soil, Dry soil, Drought resistant
- Hardiness
- Cold to -15C (RHS H5)
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Use for
- Structural, Coloured stems
- Hazards
- Yes, potentially harmful; Humans: Harmful if eaten
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water in dry periods
Established plants in the ground can cope with 7-10 days of dryness, and shrubs often manage 2 to 3 weeks. Water one section of the garden thoroughly each day rather than a little everywhere. Check plants in pots more often, especially in hot weather.
Spring - early-mid · Planting
Prune young growth
Remove the flower and most of the young growth that the plant has made in the previous season. Leave just around 2 centimetres of young growth on the plant. Don't cut into old wood unless it is diseased or damaged.
Planting & general
Outdoor planting · Planting
Add root growth stimulant to the planting hole
Mycorrhizal fungi helps roots establish quickly, so they absorb water and nutrients more efficiently. It comes as a powder, granule or gel. Add to the planting hole or container, and to the plant's rootball before planting in the hole. For "bareroot" plants use a gel.