Billy Buttons

Billy Buttons (Pycnosorus globosus) sends slim stems to about 60cm above a silvery clump barely 30cm across, each one topped with a tight golden globe. It is a south-eastern Australian native that thrives on neglect in hot, dry, poor ground, and it cuts and dries better than almost anything else in the garden. Plant it in a drift and the effect is a small field of gold.

Why you'll love it

• Golden globe flowers. Round drumstick heads on tall bare stems through spring and summer, a shape nothing else in the border offers.
• An excellent cut flower. Stems last well in a vase and hold their colour for months when hung upside down to dry.
• Thrives where soil is poor. Frost hardy, heat tolerant and drought tolerant, and it actively prefers lean unimproved ground to a rich bed.
• Feeds pollinators. Native bees and butterflies work the flower heads steadily through the warmer months.

Where it works best

Mass planting and borders. Plant 30cm apart. Massed at that spacing the flower stems read as a single drift, and a group of ten or more is far more effective than a scattered few.

Rockeries and gravel gardens. Sharp drainage and reflected heat suit it exactly, and the silvery foliage sits well against stone.

Pots and raised beds. A free draining mix in a 250mm pot works, and raising the plants puts the flower stems within easy reach for cutting.

Growing Billy Buttons in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, and plenty of it. It suits warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean and arid or semi-arid gardens, and is frost hardy. Humid subtropical summers are its weak point, where crowded plants tend to rot at the base.

Soil. Free draining and low in fertility. Sandy or gravelly ground is ideal, and rich composted beds produce soft growth and floppy stems. On clay, plant on a raised mound.

Water and feed. Water to establish through the first few months, then only occasionally. Skip fertiliser altogether, or use a very light native blend, since feeding shortens the display.

Deadheading. Cut spent stems at the base as the globes fade and more flowers follow. Leaving a few heads to seed often gives you gentle self sowing through an open sunny bed.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown as tube stock, 140mm plants in packs of 10 and 200mm plants in packs of 6. The packs suit it, because this is a massing plant rather than a specimen and a single one looks lost. Tubes are the economical way to plant a large drift.

Be realistic about its lifespan: this is a short lived perennial, best treated as a seasonal filler that you replace every few years rather than a permanent structural plant. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse the Australian native range
• Plants suited to rockeries and gravel
• Native plants with yellow flowers
• Low growing ideas for garden borders

Common questions

How far apart should I plant them?

Thirty centimetres apart, in a block rather than a line. The clumps are only 30cm wide, so close spacing is what produces the massed drift of globes people plant them for.

Do they come back every year?

They are short lived perennials, so expect a few good seasons rather than a decade. Regular deadheading extends flowering, and plants often self sow gently in an open sunny bed.

How do I dry the flowers?

Cut the stems once the globes are fully coloured, strip the lower leaves, and hang them upside down in a dry airy spot out of sunlight. They hold their gold for months.

Will they grow in the subtropics?

They can, but humidity is the limiting factor and plants are often shorter lived there. Give them the sunniest, sharpest draining position you have and space them properly so air moves between the clumps.