I’ve learnt my lesson, plant them and leave them alone! I planted 5 potted Actinotus helianthi last year in my garden, 1 remains, the others were over loved and over watered I think, or there may have been some trampling going on courtesy of kids playing on the swing.

Actinotus helianthi are wildflowers, it can be hard to re-create the wild in our gardens by allowing these plants to thrive with neglect.

With felt like leaves and velvety flowers from Spring to December, they are great cut flowers in an arrangement whilst also pruning the shrub. Or leave them on the plant and to turn into fluffy seeds that are spread in the wind. The seeds are very viable and it is not uncommon to find them popping up nearby in your garden.

In the photo above you can see the little pollinators that are attracted to the flowers.

This shrub can get up to a meter in height but is usually smaller, and half a meter in width.

It is a great flower for cottage garden styles or coastal gardens.

I previously covered the Flannel Flower here :https://malleedesign.com.au/try-growing-actinotus-helianthi-its-too-easy/and honestly believed that Actinotus helianthi grows best in part shade, ‘HA’ how wrong can I be?! now I just think plant them and leave them be.

These flannel flowers are growing on a steep coastal cliff which is made up of crumbly, gravelly soil, they are doing better than the Bitou bush!

As they cope with strong salt laden winds you can see how they are growing almost as a ground cover rather than a small shrub. In the image below they are also growing on a headland, however they have protection from taller species like Banksia serrata, Casuarina sp. and Leptospermums.

So where does this leave me on advising where to grow them? the soil is the key, it needs to be very well drained and if not then provide them with some shade. Goodluck!