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bushy seaside tansy

Borrichia frutescens · Asteraceae

bushy seaside tansy (Borrichia frutescens)
Photo: Bob Peterson from North Palm Beach, Florida, Planet Earth! · CC BY-SA · via Wikimedia Commons

bushy seaside tansy (Borrichia frutescens) is a perennial shrub in the Asteraceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 8 and warmer, down to about 17°F.

At a glance

Typeshrub USDA
Lifecycleperennial USDA
Native statusnative USDA
Mature height2.6 ft USDA
Lightfull-sun USDA
Water needmedium USDA
Growth raterapid USDA
Soil pH6.1–7.5 USDA
Flower colorYellow USDA
Hardiness zones8 and warmer USDA
Guild layershrub Derived
Nursery availabilityRoutinely Available USDA

USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.

Growing conditions

It needs full sun. USDA rates it as having moderate water needs. Its drought tolerance is rated low. It handles periodically wet ground (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance medium). It is recorded on soils from pH 6.1 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 8.

Size and growth

At maturity it reaches about 2.6 ft, making it about knee height. It grows quickly.

Foliage, flower and season

Summer foliage is green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is spring. USDA rates its lifespan as moderate.

What the site needs to provide

USDA records it across sites receiving 28 to 60 inches of annual precipitation. It needs at least 200 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 14 inches. Fertility requirement: low — no feeding needed on ordinary garden soil.

Propagating it

Propagate it from seed, bare root and container stock. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a moderate rate. It spreads vegetatively at a moderate rate.

Resilience and wildlife

Browsing animals find it moderately palatable, so expect deer and rabbits to take an interest. Its growth form is recorded as rhizomatous.

Role in a guild

Shrub layer. In a layered planting this is woody mid-level structure between the understory and the ground. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.

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Tags

deciduoussalt-tolerantwet-tolerantclay-tolerantsandy-soilspreadingnativefull-sunfast-growing

Related plants

Similar role and hardiness

Where this data comes from

Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol BOFR, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.

Read our full data sources and methodology.

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