Osteospermums are sometimes referred to as African daisies, reflecting their South African origins. There they grow in hot, sunny, sandy situations, happy even when there’s little rainfall, so it’s no wonder they do so well in New Zealand beach gardens and wherever there’s lots of sunshine.
Not that they’re only for poor and sandy soils - because they flower for such a long period and are so pretty and cheerful they’re often used among other perennials to add extra zing, especially the bright and bold new varieties such as ‘Buttermilk’.
Mix ‘Buttermilk’ with golden roses and lavenders such as ‘Violet Intrigue’ where a cottage garden look is sought. Combine it with blue flowers such as Ceratostigma ‘Forest Blue’ and hebes such as ‘Totara Blue’ or mingle it with golden flowered kangaroo paws and striking new Gazania varieties including ‘Montezuma’ and ‘Sunset Jane’. In a beach garden Osteospermum ‘Buttermilk’ is good to grow with orange flowered Leucospermum cordifolium or Leucadendrons such as ‘Tokyo Red’ and ‘Safari Sunset’.
The informal habit of Osteospermum ‘Buttermilk’ makes it interesting to use as a groundcover around bold foliage plants with architectural good looks such as Aloe bainesii, Beschorneria yuccoides, Cordyline ‘Green Goddess’ and Echium fastuosum, or to mingle with bright foliage shrubs - Coprosma ‘Green and Gold’ would be ideal in an open, sunny situation.
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Schemes & Themes
using Liddle Wonder Plants