Flannel flowers

Mix flannel flowers into rockeries, pots or cottage garden beds for a touch of whimsy, writes AB BISHOP

The bright white, daisy-like blooms of flannel flower illuminate the landscape, catching the eye from afar. Closer inspection reveals the soft, furry texture their name suggests, with every part of the plant covered in fine hairs, known as trichomes.

Flannel flower (Actinotus helianthi) can grow into a shrub about 1m high but usually behaves as a herbaceous plant up to 50cm tall. It's ideal for rockeries or cottage-style beds, with its deeply lobed, silver-grey leaves contrasting beautifully with flowers of all colours. Try it mixed with paper daisies, kangaroo paw and catmint, or perhaps in a large mixed pot with pink gaura. It likes having neighbours, as they help protect its shallow roots.

planting & care

Flannel flower won’t tolerate wet feet, and it grows best in sandy soil to clay loam. If soil isn’t well-drained, create mounded beds at least 15cm high, or use pots with a native potting mix.

When planting, minimise root disturbance. Once established, flannel flower tolerates mild frost, but needs protection from strong winds. It prefers dappled shade but usually copes with full sun if the roots are protected. This is easily achieved when it’s grown with other plants or close to rocks or logs.

Use gravel or even eucalyptus leaves as mulch, rather than bark, to minimise possible grey mould breakouts, which flannel flower is susceptible to during wet weather. For this reason, also try to avoid watering the foliage, and remove dead leaves periodically.

The main flowering time for flannel flowers is spring, and this is when to apply a native plant fertiliser. Blooms range from 2.5cm to 8cm and they should keep appearing well into summer, especially if you deadhead regularly and apply seaweed solution every few weeks. Plants start looking bedraggled in autumn, so this is the best time to lightly prune them to encourage bushiness.

Propagate flannel flower from firm cuttings in spring. It’s possible to grow plants from seed, but germination can be sporadic and the process requires the application of smoke water.

OPPOSITE & BELOW Soft grey foliage and white owers make these a versatile choice for any garden; one year after bush res swept across the Blue Mountains, pink annel ower (Actinotus forsythii) carpeted the landscape – it's a rare sight to see them ower en masse. e seed germinated in response to a chemical found in bush re smoke; this Aussie classic even ended up on a two-shilling stamp in 1959.