The Swan River Daisy
MAYBE 2012 is the opportune time to introduce something new to your garden. You need not necessarily do anything as drastic as ringing out the old to ring in the new, but perhaps it is apposite to develop a milder resolve: New year; new plants. Top local horticulturalists at ‘The # 1 Plant Shop’ on Sheriff Street recommends to your attention the beautiful Brachycome — the proverbial new kid in town.
Its scientific name is Brachycome iberidifolia, but some call it the Blue Zephyr, while others know it as the Swan River Daisy.

Genus
Brachycome is a spreading, bun-shaped evergreen shrub which is a member of a genus of approximately 70 species of mostly annual and perennial herbs, and a few sub-shrubs in the daisy family, Asteraceae.
Sixty-five of the species are endemic to Australia; the rest are found in New Zealand and New Guinea. Lovers of the Swan River Daisy say it is the kind of plant that “grows on you.”

Characteristics
The Swan River Daisy has especially fine foliage, and reaches a height of only about one foot.
The lilac, daisy-like flowers grow just above the soft, ferny, bright green foliage almost all the time. Its compact, bushy shape, pretty fragrant flowers and gray-green leaves make it attractive from the time it has been planted. It flowers so heavily that the foliage is often obscured.
The Swan River Daisy’s lacy foliage and small but profuse blue-purple flowers have a long season of impact in the garden or indoors. It is excellent in window boxes or other containers, or at the front of a bed or border, or in hanging baskets.
This is a durable, drought-resistant plant that grows with virtually no care when planted in suitable growing conditions, such as a site with full sun and rich, well-drained soil.

Available
The plant is being cultivated locally by the # 1 Plant Shop, and is a new plant being made available in addition to many other varieties of plants in stock, the proprietor has disclosed.
More information on the newcomer brachycome can be had from the # 1Plant Shop on Sheriff Street, Telephone # 227-8094.