Strawflower – Silvery Rose

Description

Strawflower (Helichrysum bracteatum, also listed as Xerochrysum bracteatum) is a much-loved ornamental and useful garden plant, prized for its long-lasting, papery blooms in vivid shades of yellow, orange, red, pink, and white. Native to Australia, it has become a staple of cottage gardens worldwide thanks to its ability to flower abundantly over summer and autumn and to hold its colour and shape when dried, making it one of the best flowers for everlasting bouquets and crafts. In the garden it is easy to grow, thriving in sunny, well-drained positions, and its blooms attract bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects. While sometimes noted in folk medicine for wound-healing and anti-inflammatory properties, today strawflower is chiefly valued as an ornamental for fresh and dried arrangements. In New Zealand, it is most reliably grown as an annual, as it is frost-tender and short-lived in colder conditions.