Spartium junceum (Spanish Broom)

Filling the summer air with its terrific honey-vanilla scent, award-winner Spartium junceum (Spanish Broom) is a vigorous, medium-sized shrub which produces masses of large, bright yellow pea-like flowers, 1 in. long (2.5 cm) in summer. They are borne on flexible, erect, almost leafless, green broom-like stems and are followed by flat green seed pods. Forming a cheerful bush, this tough and showy Mediterranean native thrives on neglect and is particularly useful in poor, well-drained soils in exposed, sunny sites. It is however considered in several US states (such as California, Oregon, Hawaii) as a noxious weed because of its prolific seed production and aggressive replacement of native plants.

• Recipient of the prestigious Award of Garden Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society
• Grows up to 6-10 ft. tall and wide (180-300 cm) but it is best kept compact.
• Easily grown in poor, well-drained soils in full sun.
• Drought tolerant and deer resistant
• Great for beds and borders, wall-side borders, coastal gardens, Mediterranean gardens.
• Virtually disease and pest free.
• Propagate by seed sown in containers in a cold frame in fall or spring
• Ingestion may cause severe discomfort.
• Native to the Meditteranean region and Canary Islands. Spanish Broom has escaped from cultivation and become an aggressive invader in many tropical, subtropical and temperate regions of the world.
• Spartium junceum is invasive in the United States.
• Discover beautiful U.S. native plant alternatives.