Native to South America, this shrub was introduced into the US has now naturalized to some extent in the southwest US. It is a shrub or small tree in the bean family. The plant is upright, open, rounded irregularly and spreading. Its showy yellow flowers with bright red yellow stamens and feathery, fern-like leaves make quite a beautiful display. It's resistant to damage by deer and drought. Grown as a tropical plant, in lower zones it may need to be planted in a protected location, cut back to the ground each year and the root zone mulched well. Its growth is dependent on rainfall and sunshine. To reach its full potential or height, adequate rainfall or watering is required as well as 8 hours of sunshine daily. Allowing the soil to dry slightly between watering will stimulate the plant to develop a deep root system. Less often deep watering will help the development of the plant, rather than frequent, less volume watering. Improper watering will also lead to the plants' inability to produce flowers. Pruning should be done only to promote the shape of the plant. Shearing should never be part of your pruning schedule, the recovery can be a long process. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No serious insect or disease issues. Ingestion of the fruits and or seeds can cause gastrointestinal upset.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry
Available space
3 feet-6 feet; 6-feet-12 feet
Mature size
Height: 6 ft. 0 in. - 8 ft. 0 in. | Width: 4 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Rapid
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
3 - Shrub (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Open; Rounded; Spreading
Texture
Fine
Foliage
Broadleaf Evergreen
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf feel
Soft
Leaf size
> 6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Leaves are up to 6" long and have 3 to 10 pairs of pinnae. Each pinnae with have 6 to 10 leaflets up to 1/4" long.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; Red/Burgundy
Flower value
Long Bloom Season; Showy
Flower form
Raceme
Flower shape
Star
Flower size
3-6 inches
Flower detail
One inch Yellow flowers with 5" showy red stamens form on racemes up that can grow to u to 20" long. Flowers have five petals and 10 long red stamens.
Bloom time
Fall; Spring; Summer
Fruit color
Brown/Copper
Fruit detail
Light brown pods with dark glands hairy when young smooth as they mature. Seeds are ovate, compressed brown with purple black spots. These unsightly fruits are heavy and tend to weigh down the branches. The seeds are ejected from its pods when they burst open.
Stem color
Brown/Copper; Purple/Lavender
Stem detail
Young stems are hairy black or brown glands
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Origin
Argentina and Uruguay
Distribution
AZ, CA, GA, NM, NV, OK, TX. UT
Wildlife value
Hummingbirds and butterflies are attracted to the flowers.
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Problems & Resistance
Problems
Messy; Problem for Cats; Problem for Dogs
Resistant to
Deer; Drought; Dry Soil; Heat
Propagation
Seed
Poison severity
Low
Poison parts
Leaves
Poison symptoms
Oral irritation, intense burning and irritation of mouth, tongue and lips, excessive drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty swallowing and incoordination is possible. Deaths in rabbits have been reported.