There are some plants I grow to use as fillers, both in the garden and in cut arrangements. The rice flower shrub (ozothamnus) is one of those plants. It does well in both the sun and partial shade, although it tends to get a bit scraggly in shady areas and needs to be cut back to maintain a full look.
I have grown it for years and I like the way it looks light and airy in the garden beds when mixed with other plants.
The pink one has a tendency to fade in too much sun. It holds it's flowers for a long time and blooms almost all spring and summer in our area.
It also lasts a long time when cut and dries nicely too. The books say it has a pleasant fragrance although I must admit I've never noticed. Now I know someone is going to ask if this is the plant that rice comes from and the answer is no!
13 comments:
It has a delicate, feathery texture, and I can see how nice it would be next to solid leaves or bold flowers, knitting them together. Both colours look good, and would coordinate with so many other blooms.
The rice flower plant looks like it would make a nice companion to roses too.
Rice flower plant looks great, it refresh our eyes every time we seen it. If I can have a garden I can also plant those rice flower then I will add some garden ornaments like wind spinners to look more unique. Thank you for sharing this rice flower plants.
This is a new plant to me and i LOVE the pink version. Lovely! Thanks for sharing!
I just got the pink ones a couple of weeks ago. They are in pots. But, now the green stems are turning yellow. I am a new gardener. Is the plant diseased? What do I do now?
Kkyhmn, yellow stems sounds more like a cultural issue than disease. Is the plant getting too much water, they do not like wet feet.
Where to buy?
I bought a few at local nurseries here in Southern California, other than that I don't know where you would find them.
Hope: I bought mine at Friedman's in Petaluma Calif. It has white and pink flowers and has never stopped blooming. (1 year plus ago) It is mostly in the shade with a little sun. Love it and has recd many compliments. cut it back only a little.
Just bought a pink one and had gotten many compliments as well as questions. Does it have seeds? How can we propagate to share with friends? Thank you.
Pearl M,
I have never collected the seeds so I can't really help you there, but good luck!
I picked up 6 at the local Home Depot 2 weeks ago. Still in their original plastic. Haven't planted them in their permanent pots yet. Two look like they're getting kind of dead and woody at their base. Root bound? They are on an 8 minute water cycle each day. Full sun. Repotting on Saturday..but concerned damage might be irrepairable. Any advice?
Katie,
Sorry for the late response! My guess would be that you are giving them too much water. Even for a new plant that is a lot of water. Mine get that much twice a week and thrive. You can try just cutting them back to where you can see green on the stem if you scratch it with your nail. That will show you if there is still life in the stems or not.
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