Plants are grouped in families containing their closest relatives, and sometimes the characters that show them to be related are evident.
For example, the various pines and spruces look like variations on a theme and seem like they belong together in a classification system. However, in other cases it is not at all obvious that the diverse members of a family should be grouped together.
A good example is the Rhamnaceae, commonly known as the Buckthorn family, and widely distributed around the world. This family includes some familiar plants, but in many cases it is quite surprising to find that they are related.
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In California, one of the family’s great contributions to horticulture is the genus Ceanothus, with many species native to our state. The coffeeberry is another California native, but few would suspect that it was related. Similarly, it might be surprising to learn that the jujube tree of Asia and the anchor plant of South America, Colletia paradoxa, are also in the Rhamnaceae family, as is the wonderful South African shrub named Phylica pubescens.
Although its family affiliation may not be obvious, it is easy to see how Phylica pubescens got its common name, “featherhead.” Indeed, there are few plants in the whole world with an appearance as feathery as this.
P. pubescens has multiple ascending stems with many slender, leathery green leaves 1-1/2 inches long among them. Each leaf is coated with wispy white or yellow hairs.
The plants bloom in the winter with clusters of small flowers at the ends of the stems. Below the flower heads are rings of soft feathery bracts that extend outward like downy pale-yellow tentacles. The entire bush glows when back-lit because of the hairs on the leaves, but this is doubly true of the paler and fuzzier bracts, which have an uncanny ability to catch light.
The tiny white flowers themselves are lost amidst the feathery extravagance of the blooming plant, but they can be seen on close approach. Various bees, flies and beetles are attracted to the blossoms, and if successfully pollinated the plant forms hard, brown three-chambered capsules containing the dark brown seeds.
In nature, Phylica pubescens is found in habitats with fynbos vegetation, which is roughly equivalent to California’s chaparral. Both of these fynbos and chaparral habitats are composed of fire-adapted shrubs that thrive on dry summers and mild wet winters, but the actual species present in each are completely different.
Three plant groups are especially abundant in the fynbos areas: the Protea family, the Erica family (heaths and heathers), and the Restio family (rush-like plants used to thatch roofs in South Africa). But this is only the beginning of the story as there are thousands of species found there, including bulbs, pelargoniums, various succulents and Phylica pubescens.
Like many other fynbos plants, P. pubescens dislikes alkaline conditions and is intolerant of high levels of phosphorus. These areas are naturally low in phosphorus, so plants there are hyper-efficient at extracting it and can overdose if given too much.
To succeed with P. pubescens, give it plenty of sun, good drainage and only apply low-phosphorus fertilizers.
Brian Kemble is curator at the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek. His monthly column focuses on drought tolerant plants and dry gardens. Email questions to info@ruthbancroftgarden.org. Learn more about the Ruth Bancroft Garden at www.ruthbancroftgarden.org.
