Leucospermum
Leucospermum cordifolium
Everything rests on drainage — in wet ground the roots rot, and nothing done above ground makes up for it.
Spacing & sowing
- Plant spacing
- 6 ft 7 in
- In-row spacing
- 6 ft 7 in
- Between rows
- 8 ft 2 in
- Square-foot density
- Not suited to SFG
Growing
- Type
- Shrub · Perennial
- Botanical family
- Mixed / other
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Feeding
- Rose & flower
- Frost tolerant
- Yes
- Flowering
- April
Through the year
- Mar–Apr Bud Break
- Apr–Jul Flowering
- Jul–Nov Growing
- Nov–Dec Winter Dormancy
- Jan–Mar Winter Dormancy
Companions
Protea, Erica, Restio, Agapanthus
Pests & problems
- Leaf miners Larvae that tunnel pale wandering trails or blotches inside the leaf itself. Pick off and destroy mined leaves; damage is usually cosmetic.
- Scale insects Immobile brown or white bumps fixed to stems and leaf undersides, sucking sap and weakening growth. Wipe off with a damp cloth or dab with horticultural soap; watch for the sooty mold that follows.
- Phytophthora root and foot rot Phytophthora root rot, wherever the soil stays wet
Garden allies
Beneficial predators that hunt this plant's pests — grow their favourite flowers nearby to recruit them. companion plant
- Hoverfly SyrphidaeHunts Scale insects
Bee-mimicking flies whose legless larvae graze aphid colonies clean while the adults pollinate. A ribbon of shallow, nectar-rich flowers kept in bloom all season recruits wave after wave of them.
- Ladybird (lady beetle) CoccinellidaeHunts Scale insects
The gardener’s favorite ally: adults and their alligator-shaped larvae each eat thousands of aphids, plus scale, mealybugs, and other soft-bodied sap-suckers. Grow flat, open flowers for the adults and never spray a colony that ladybird larvae are already working.
- Parasitic wasps Braconidae & TrichogrammaHunts Leaf miners
Tiny, stingless wasps that lay eggs in or on caterpillars, aphids, and moth eggs — the white cocoons riding a hornworm are their calling card, so leave that caterpillar be. Umbel flowers with shallow nectar keep the adults fuelled.
The Cottage Garden Companion — the gardener's herbarium at cottagegardencompanion.com