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Metalasia muricata
Also called White Blombush, White Bristlebush, White Flowerbush
Metalasia muricata is a hardy, twiggy South African shrub in the daisy family, usually 2 to 4 m tall, with honey-scented flowers. It is grown for its tolerance of frost, wind and poor sandy soils, and suits sunny, free-draining garden sites.
Metalasia muricata, commonly known as white bristle bush or blombos, is a hardy virgate or twiggy shrub with honey-scented flowers usually 2–4 m tall, woody with a rounded crown. It is native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa, where it is an important component of the coastal and mountain fynbos regions. It is encountered in a number of forms in its extended distribution, some of which are tolerant of frost, wind and poor sandy soils.
A member of the Asteraceae or daisy family, Metalasia has some 54 species in South Africa, many of them found in the Western Cape. The name of the genus Metalasia is derived from 'meta' which can have many meanings, but in this case is intended as 'reverse', and 'lasios' meaning 'woolly', an allusion to the woolly reverse sides of the leaves; 'muricata' means warty with short, sharp points like the shell of the Murex.
Pointy Blombush · Crooked Blombush · Metalasia agathosmoides · Metalasia albescens · Metalasia alfredii · Golden Blombush · Metalasia bodkinii · Shortleaf Blombush · Lime Blombush · Ball Blombush · Metalasia cephalotes · Dense Blombush
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Metalasia muricata by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
