OTHONNA cheirifolia (=Hertia cheirifolia)

Beautiful and very easy perennial and evergreen herb, with an exuberant and fast growth and a ground cover habit, it is native to northern Africa. At the maximum of its development, it does not exceed 25-30 cm in height, while it can expand much more in width. It consists of numerous stems, mainly herbaceous, lignified only in the basal portion, partly erect, partly crawling on the ground in every direction, which together give the plant the appearance of a perfect thick, regular and rounded ground cover. The alternate leaves, elegantly arranged on a single plane, are spatula-shaped, with smooth margins and rounded apex, smooth, glabrous and slightly fleshy and gray-green. In the middle of spring and until the beginning of summer, the apical parts of the branches elongate in thin stems that support graceful warm golden daisies: if fertilized, myriads of seeds develop, equipped with pappus, which guarantee easy self-dissemination in nature.

It prefers sunny or partially shady locations and adapts to any type of soil, but prefers poor, dry and perfectly drained ones. It tolerates even prolonged periods of drought as well as the salinity typical of sea winds in coastal regions. It bears minimum winter temperatures of a few degrees below zero, especially if not associated with high atmospheric humidity. In autumn it is advisable to clean the plant from dry, broken or damaged, old or bulky parts and, on this occasion, slightly shorten the various stems to ensure a more regular and compact growth and to increase the subsequent spring flowering. It can be successfully grown on terraces and balconies in medium-sized containers, while in the open ground it is used to embellish rocks, or at the edge of dry stone walls from which it descends softly, along embankments and sloping areas to retain the soil, or again, together with succulents of various types, to the foot of cacti in our desert garden. Interesting and original could also be its use, arranging various specimens in linear succession, to create very low borders marking the path.