Bulbine

Bulbine frutescens

This is a clumping succulent and it continues with our theme of trying to promote plants that use less water but are still very beautiful in our landscape. This is a very small plant. It gets about a 1′ tall and spreads to about 2 feet. Each of the plants will clump and create more plants which makes its very easy to divide.

Bulbine comes in both yellow flowering and orange flowering cultivars, with flower spikes to about 2 feet tall. 10 to 15 flowers will form per plant. They flower all the way from mid-spring through fall, and they love our heat! They’re native to South Africa, which makes them very heat and drought tolerant. But they are also hardy to 20 degrees.

They love full sun, but they can also take light shade. In light shade, they may flower a little bit less, but that’s easy to give up if you have a shady spot. They add a structural contract with their upright succulent leaves that adds a nice contrast to leafy plants or agave beds.

Very, very low water on these. But if you give them too much water, they really won’t mind too much. They may just not flower as much or may not look as healthy. They’re very adaptable to different soil types, which makes them another great addition to our perennial gardens.