Braamfontein Spruit Ecological Corridor

Succulent Bush Ragwort

Senecio barbertonicus

© (c) steveball, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by steveball (CC-BY-NC)

Description - from Wikipedia

Senecio barbertonicus, the Barberton groundsel
or succulent bush senecio, is an evergreen succulent shrub of the family Asteraceae and genus Senecio, native to Southern Africa, named after one of its native localities Barberton and is now also being cultivated elsewhere for its drought resistance, clusters of sweetly scented, golden-yellow, tufted flower heads in winter and attractiveness to butterflies, the painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) in particular.

Description
A succulent bush growing over 2 m (6 ft) tall and wide with a fleshy trunk, light green, cylindrical, finger-like leaves 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 in) in length and 6 to 10 mm (1⁄4 to 3⁄8 in) in diameter, densely packed around the stem and curved at the base to lie parallel to the stem and pointing upwards.
The fragrant yellow flowers, 1 cm (3⁄8 in) wide and 8 cm (3 in) long, bloom July through September, are terminal and produce seeds with a dense tuft of bristles.
Senecio barbertonicus is hardy to at least −4 °C (25 °F).

Distribution
Senecio barbertonicus grows predominantly in rocky grassland and bushveld in Southern Africa in areas ranging from Eswatini and Mozambique, to Eastern parts of Zimbabwe and South Africa at elevations between 34 and 1,700 m (110 and 5,500 ft).
It is locally common in protected areas in eastern, central, and southwestern Eswatini
in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North-West.

Gallery
References
Further reading
Media related to Senecio barbertonicus at Wikimedia Commons
Wild Flowers of KwaZulu-Natal - Elsa Pooley (Natal Flora Trust, Durban 1998) ISBN 0-620-21500-3
"The Succulent Senecios of South Africa". The Guide to Life, The Universe and Everything. 2003-07-13. Archived from the original on 2009-05-11. Retrieved 2008-02-27.

Read more here

Species Characteristics

Wildlife supported

Bees Bees
Butterflies Butterflies

Tolerances & suitability

Drought-resistant Drought-resistant
Good garden plant Good garden plant
Good potplant Good potplant

Growth features

Easy to grow Easy to grow

Social features

Fragrant Fragrant

Aspect

Semi-shade Semi-shade
Sun Sun

Plant types

Shrub Shrub
Succulent Succulent

Spatial classification

Flowering Period
  • Yellow
Jun Jul Aug

Nursery availability

In stock

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