Scientific: Galphimia gracilis (Synonym: Galphimia glauca)
Common: slender goldshower, spray of gold, shower of gold, goldshower, golden thryallis, grano de oro
Family: Malpighiaceae
Origin: Eastern tropical Mexico south to Peru (naturalized in south Florida)
Pronounciation: Gal-fi-ME-a gra-CIL-is
Hardiness zones
Sunset 13, 20-24
USDA 9 (with some cold protection)-11
Landscape Use: Mesic landscapes, graceful flowering accent, informal landscape borders, background of informal hedge, containers.
Form & Character: Upright and somewhat open, informal, loose, festive, tender, tropical.
Growth Habit: Evergreen, woody, broadleaf perennial shrub, slow to moderate growth, upright and somewhat open to 4- to 6-feet tall with near equal spread.
Foliage/Texture: Somewhat thickened, ovate to elliptical, medium light green leaves to 2-inches long, brittle branches; medium fine texture.
Flowers & Fruits: Terminal racemes of yellow, star-shaped flowers each having five sepals, five petals and 10 red stamens; fruits are subglobose capsules.
Seasonal Color: Yellow flowers during the entire warm season (ever blooming) from March through November, red foliage during December and January.
Temperature: Tolerant of desert summer heat and reponds well to the the humidity of the Arizona monsoon during July through September, but will show chilling injury (reddened foliage) if winter temperatures drop below 40oF and freeze damage if temperatures drop below 32oF.
Light: Partial sun best (mostly intolerant of western afternoon sun) in Phoenix. Full sun in southern California coastal landscapes.
Soil: Prefers neutral to somewhat acidic, well-drained soils. In desert landscape gardens, soils should be organic amended and mulched for best performance.
Watering: Slender goldshower is NOT drought tolerant at all in Phoenix, thus it WILL require regular and frequent irrigations to just survive, let alone flourish. In contrast, this serviceable shrub is mildly drought tolerant in southern California coastal landscapes.
Pruning: Prune lightly and infrequently to manage growth and form. Can be severe renewal pruned in early spring to reinvigorate. Do not shear!
Propagation: By semi-hardwood cuttings or seed.
Disease and Pests: None
Additional comments: This is a servicable shrub with vibrant color for wet landscapes that is rarely seen in Phoenix. Its extreme drought intolerance makes it difficult to grow with any success in Phoenix.