Actual size and flowering may vary slightly based on season.
Lavender Starflower
Lavender Starflower is an evergreen shrub with pink to lavender star-shaped flowers in late spring and on and off after. It takes almost any kind of pruning, so it can be a formal or informal hedge, a screen or an espalier, and butterflies visit the flowers. With regular water it stays green and full in the Valley.
Best for: a trimmed or natural hedge, a background screen, and an espalier on a wall or fence.
It handles almost any pruning, even hard shearing, so it can be a tight formal hedge or a loose, natural one. It keeps its leaves in the Valley.
Its branching trains well flat against a wall or fence as an espalier. Trim it regularly so it does not turn into a flat mound.
It grows about 6 to 12 feet tall and 10 to 12 feet wide. Left untrimmed, it makes a green screen with pink stars in late spring.
It is not a low-water plant and needs regular water, most of all in summer. Frost damages the leaves near 28°F.
- Hedge row5 ft apart
- Open planting12 ft apart
Water every 3 to 4 days for the first two weeks. Then stretch the gaps step by step, to about every 10 to 14 days by the second month.
Give it regular water, most of all through the Phoenix summer. Let the top of the soil dry between soakings.
Trim it regularly to keep it full and shaped. If it gets too big, it can be cut back hard.
Frost damages the leaves near 28°F. Cover it with frost cloth that reaches the ground on the hardest nights.
Drainage test first. Dig the hole and fill it with water. If water is still sitting in the hole a day later, you likely hit caliche, clay or hard soil, so fix the drainage before planting. If it drains very fast, the soil is sandy. Standing water around roots is a common reason new plants fail.
Weed cloth. Cut it away from the planting hole and where the roots will spread. Remove any plastic sheeting completely, since it keeps water and air out of the soil.
Rock or decomposed granite with no soil underneath. Bring in soil close in texture to your native soil, mix it with the soil below, and build up enough depth for roots before planting.
If you can break through. Use a breaker bar, pick, or jackhammer. Dig through the caliche and break out the solid chunks. Backfill with the soil you dug out, with no compost or manure in the hole. Confirm drainage before planting.
If you cannot break through. Dig narrow holes through the hard layer beside the root ball, not under it, and refill them with the same soil, not gravel. If it still will not drain, plant on a low mound of the same soil.
Root ball. Check the outside edges for any roots circling around. Loosen or cut those so they grow outward. Do not break up the center of the root ball.
Depth. The top of the root ball should sit at or just slightly above the surrounding soil level. Planting too deep can lead to rot and kill the plant.
Drip emitters. At planting, put the emitters on the root ball, on different sides of the plant. After about 2 months, move them to the outer edge of the root ball. Over the first year, add emitters farther out toward the edge of the branches as roots grow. Once a plant is rooted, never water only at the trunk.
What does Lavender Starflower look like in bloom?
It opens pink to lavender, star-shaped flowers about 1 to 2 inches wide in late spring, then off and on the rest of the year.
How big does it get?
It grows about 6 to 12 feet tall and 10 to 12 feet wide, and regular trimming keeps it smaller. Give it that much room if you let it grow naturally.
Can I shear it into a hedge?
Yes. It takes almost any pruning, including shearing, so it works as a formal or informal hedge.
Can it be an espalier?
Yes. It can be trained flat against a wall or fence. Trim it regularly so it keeps its shape.
How much water does it need?
It needs regular water, most of all in the long Phoenix summer, so it is not a low-water plant. Let the top of the soil dry between soakings.
How cold hardy is it?
The leaves are damaged near 28°F, so cover it with frost cloth on the hardest freeze nights.
Does it attract butterflies?
Yes, butterflies visit the pink star flowers. Plant it where you can see it from a window or patio.
Can I cut it back hard?
Yes, you can cut it back hard if it gets too large, and it regrows.
Lavender Starflower for sale in Arizona, delivered to you
Lavender Starflower (Grewia occidentalis) is an evergreen South African shrub with pink star flowers. Below are the questions people ask most about growing it in a Valley yard, from size, hedges and espaliers to water, pruning and cold.
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What is Lavender Starflower?
It is Grewia occidentalis, an evergreen shrub from South Africa with pink star-shaped flowers. It is sometimes sold as Grewia caffra.
Lavender Starflower as a hedge
It takes shearing well, so it makes a formal or informal hedge or a background screen.
Lavender Starflower espalier
Its branching trains flat against a wall or fence. Trim it regularly to keep the shape.
How much water does Lavender Starflower need?
It needs regular water, most of all in summer, because it is not drought tolerant. Let the top of the soil dry between soakings.
How big does Lavender Starflower get?
It grows about 6 to 12 feet tall and 10 to 12 feet wide, and stays smaller with regular trimming.
Is Lavender Starflower cold hardy?
Its leaves are damaged near 28°F. Cover it on the coldest nights.
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