Pronounciation: Er-i-ca-MER-ee-a lar-i-ce-FOL-ee-a

Hardiness zones
Sunset 10-13
USDA 7-10

Landscape Use: Great xeriscape filler to accent plant, small scale ground and bank cover, revegetation.

Form & Character: Tight and mounding, relatively formal and rounded, carefree, arid, mildly stinky.

Growth Habit: Evergreen, woody, narrowleaf perennial subshrub, moderate to 2-feet tall with 3-feet spread. Becomes larger with a more open, 'rank' habit if regularly irrigated.

Foliage/Texture: Leaves are small and linear to less than 1-inch long, aromatic; fine texture.

Flowers & Fruits: Small yellow flowers in profusion, flowers 1-inch across with peduncles that extend above foliar canopy, fruits light brown, unsightly.

Seasonal Color: Yellow flowers in early fall.

Temperature: Tolerant of lower desert heat and cold hardy to 5^oF.

Light: Full sun, no shade.

Soil: Tolerant

Watering: Once established little supplemental water is required. Use water to control growth. Don't over irrigate!

Pruning: Slight heading back or light shearing in spring only to direct shape and size. Avoid frequent pruning as turpentine bush is slow to recover, especially if plants are infrequently irrigated or not irrigated at all.

Propagation: Seed

Disease and Pests: None

Additional comments: Turpentine bush is surging in popularity as a low growing, xeriscape (desert landscaping) filler plant with fall-flowering accent. Excess water encourages rank, unsightly growth, ergo cultivate on the dry side in the landscape for best performance. Turpentine bush is similar form and growth habit to Chrysactinia mexicana, but has less aromatic foliage, is slightly larger, and flowers in the fall rather than the spring. The cultivar 'Aguirre' is a trademarked varietal selection from south central New Mexico.

Derivational tidbit: Ericameria is derived from the Greek Erica (Ereika), "heath," and meris or meros for "division or part," referring to the its heath-like or larch-like leaves.