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Podalyria calyptrata
Also called Cap Capesweetpea, Cape Sweetpea, Langeberg Blossom Pea, Sweatpea Bush, Sweet Pea Bush, Sweetpeabush, Tree Sweet Pea
Bush sweatpea is a small, tough, fast-growing South African shrub or tree of the pea family, with silvery velvety leaves and strongly scented bright-pink spring flowers. It is very easy to grow once established, and it tolerates wind, frost and drought.
Podalyria calyptrata (locally called keurtjie or water blossom pea) is a small, resilient, fast-growing tree of the Fabaceae (legume) family. It has velvety silver leaves, bears masses of bright-pink, sweetly scented flowers, and is indigenous to the Western Cape, South Africa.
Once established, P. calyptrata tolerates wind, frost, and drought, but it is healthiest when it gets regular water and it does not grow well in highly salty or alkaline soils. Overall, it is very easy to grow.
It makes a good informal hedge or screen along the edge of a property. It also makes a handsome specimen plant, with its bright flowers and attractive foliage. If planted in full sun and lightly pruned of young shoots, it becomes more bushy. If planted in the shade, it tends to become a taller tree, with less dense foliage.
This tree occurs from Cape Town northwards as far as Tulbagh and eastwards across the Cape Fold mountains. It grows amongst fynbos and on the verges of forests.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Podalyria calyptrata 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.
