Buddleja globosa

'Orange Ball Buddleja'

Buddleiaceae: a large shrub to 5m tall, with grey fissured bark. Found in dry and moist forest, from sea level to 2,000m. The deep-yellow to orange leafy-bracted inflorescences comprise one terminal and 7 pairs of pedunculate globose heads, 1.2–2.8 cm in diameter, each with 30–50 flowers, and heavily honey-scented. Blooming Jun to July. The leaves are lanceolate or elliptic, 5–15cm long by 2–6cm wide. An endemic of endemic to Chile and Argentina.

USES:

Folk medicine attributes to B. globosa wound healing properties, and the infusion of the leaves is used topically for the treatment or wounds, burns and external and internal ulcers.

GROWING INFORMATION:

Surface sow seeds. Seeds need cold stratified for 4 weeks at 4°C, and surface sow the seed in February/March in a greenhouse. Germination usually takes place within 3 - 4 weeks at 21°C. GA3 [Gibberellic acid] work well. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter, planting them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.

Requires a sunny position, preferring a rich loamy well-drained soil. Grows well by the sea, tolerating maritime exposure. Plants are hardy to about -15°C, but will re-sprout freely from the base if cut back by cold weather and are deciduous in cold winters. Plants flower on the previous year's growth. The flowers scent the air for a considerable distance with their sweet honey-like fragrance. B. globosa is dioecious: although the flowers appear hermaphrodite in having both male and female parts, only the anthers or pistils are functional in a single plant.

Rich nectar plant.

HARVESTED: 2021*

 

APPROX. 100+ SEEDS