Recommended for your garden in southern Spain: Epimedium

Commonly known as barrenwort or horny goat weed, it is adapted to dry conditions and drought-tolerant

Denise Bush

Malaga

Thursday, 17 April 2025, 12:02 | Updated 16:42h.

The genus Epimedium, commonly known as barrenwort or horny goat weed, comprises approximately 50 to 64 species of woodland plants. The majority of these are native to China, with others found in parts of Europe and Asia.

Most of the species are adapted to dry conditions and are drought-tolerant.

Epimediums are, on average, 45cm tall, although the alpine species may be shorter, and some can reach up to 60cm tall. They have heart-shaped leaves, some tinted or veined red or bronze. The flowers appear on tall, slender stems, often before the leaves unfurl, and are dainty, star-shaped blooms that come in a range of colours.

This useful plant has a spreading habit and is ideal for shady borders, under trees and shrubs, planted at the foot of walls or just used as groundcover.

In some winters the leaves will stay on (semi-evergreen) but are best trimmed back as soon as new basal shoots appear and temperatures start to rise a little. The base of the plant should be kept mulched to protect the crown in harsh winters.

Epimediums need a soil that is rich in organic matter and free-draining. They prefer a substrate that is slightly acidic.

Propagation is by division in autumn when the plant is dormant; they can take two to three years to get established.

There are many varieties of Epidemium species, too many to mention, but one of the biggest flowering is the Epimedium koreanum 'Harold Epstein' which has relatively large (compared to the rest) creamy yellow blooms that appear before the leaves.

Other notable Epimediums include E. 'Amber Queen' which has masses of amber-yellow flowers and E. stellatum 'Wang Star' which was collected from the wild in China by Roy Lancaster in 1983. It produces low-growing clumps of leathery, spiny foliage and white, star-shaped flowers.

Top 50

Esta funcionalidad es exclusiva para registrados.

Reporta un error en esta noticia