Heliotrope true sun worshipper
BY LYNDA PAPESCH
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Home and Garden
A popular bedding plant, heliotrope cherry pie, or Heliotropium arborescens, is one of the heliotropium genus of flowering plants which are in turn part of the borage family, Boraginaceae.
The name heliotrope derives from the fact that these plants turn their leaves to the sun. "Helios" is Greek for "sun", and "tropein" means "to turn".
According to Wikipedia, there are 250 to 300 species in the heliotrope genus, and Heliotrope `Cherry Pie' is one of the most widely cultivated.
Propagated from seed or cuttings, Heliotrope `Cherry Pie' can be grown in containers, window boxes, rockeries, as a border plant or as an underplanting in sunnier spots.
It thrives in moist, well-drained soil, anywhere from full sun to light shade. Highly fragrant, it is also poisonous.
An annual flowerer, it produces clusters of 6mm fragrant flowers, ranging from deep-blue, violet and lavender to white, with cherry pie or vanilla fragrance, from late spring to autumn.
Tips:
Start seeds or cuttings indoors.
Plant outside after all danger of frost has passed.
Set plants 30cm apart.
Pinch tips in early summer to encourage bushy growth and flowers.
- The Marlborough Express
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