Rhodocoma gigantea

Description

Rhodocoma gigantea is a fabulous jungly grass like evergreen plant from South Africa correctly known as a member of the restio family. Looking like a cross between bamboo and grass when young Rhodocoma gigantea appears very fluffy and somewhat wayward but as it matures the stems thicken and take on a neat green/brown horizontaly striped appearance which if you are lucky can reach 2-3 meters high. A specatular sight!

Best suited to open sunny locations in milder gardens doing very well in coastal breezy conditions. Hardy down to around -6 celsius given good drainage. I recommend adding a generous mulch of compost or bark around the base in autumn to protect the crown. Don’t give up hope if you loose top growth in a cold spell as Rhodocoma often sprout from the base if the top growth is damaged.