Golden Diosma

Golden Diosma (Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold') is grown for foliage rather than flower: a soft mound of fine golden needles that stays bright all year and releases a citrus scent whenever you brush past. It settles at about 80cm tall and 1m wide, spreading a little wider than it stands, which is exactly what you want along an edge. Pale pink flowers follow through winter, when most gardens have nothing else going on.

Why you'll love it

• Gold that lasts all year. The colour is in the foliage, not a seasonal flush, so it lights a dark corner in July as well as January.
• Scented on contact. The fine leaves give off a clean citrus note when brushed, which makes it worth planting beside a path or seat.
• Winter flowers. Small pale pink flowers cover the plant in the coldest months and bring bees out on mild days.
• Built for exposure. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, wind tolerant and salt tolerant, so a windy coastal front garden does not trouble it.

Where it works best

Low hedging, borders and edging. Plant 70cm apart for a low informal hedge. At that spacing the mounds meet within two seasons and give a soft gold line along a path.

Coastal gardens and mass planting. Salt and wind tolerance suit exposed blocks, and the same 70cm spacing works in a drift where the gold reads against grey foliage or stone.

Pots and small gardens. A pot 400mm or wider holds one plant on a sunny terrace, and in a small garden it gives year round colour without the height of a flowering shrub.

Growing golden diosma in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun is what keeps the foliage gold; in shade it turns green and thin. It suits warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens and is frost hardy once established. It is not a plant for humid tropical gardens, where the dense fine foliage stays damp and rots.

Soil. Light, free draining soil is essential. It performs well in sand and gravel and poorly in heavy wet clay, so plant on a mound if your soil holds water in winter.

Water and feed. Water weekly through the first summer, then only in long dry spells. Feed lightly with a complete fertiliser in early spring, since overfeeding gives soft growth that opens the mound up.

Pruning. Trim lightly once the winter flowering finishes, taking only the soft outer growth. Cutting into old bare wood is unreliable, so a light annual clip beats an occasional hard one.

What to expect when it arrives

Golden diosma is grown as tube stock, so the plant that arrives is small: a young shrub with fine foliage and a developing root system. That is the sensible way to buy it for a border, because it establishes quickly and forty tubes cost a fraction of forty potted shrubs.

Expect a season of root growth and modest top growth, then a filled mound in the second year and a low hedge closing over in the third. Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Choosing edging plants for paths and driveways
• Browse other fragrant plants
• Salt tolerant plants for coastal gardens
• Compare plants for small gardens

Common questions

Why has the gold faded to green?

Not enough sun, in almost every case. Golden diosma needs a full sun position to hold its colour, and even half a day of shade will dull it noticeably over a season.

How far apart for a low hedge?

Seventy centimetres apart in a single row. It grows wider than it is tall, so closer planting simply crowds the mounds and thins the foliage where they overlap.

Can I cut it back hard if it gets woody?

Not reliably. Like most fine leaved shrubs of this type it does not shoot well from bare wood. Trim lightly each year after flowering and the plant stays dense for a decade.