September Bush – 5 Seeds

September Bush is an evergreen shrub that grows to a height of 0.6 to 1.8m in height with a few upright-growing stems and slender branches densely covered with leaves that resemble myrtle. The oval-shaped leaves are usually 25-50 mm long and up to 13 mm wide. The leaves are light green, dark green or slightly grey.

The flowers are carried in small clusters at the ends of short branches and look a bit like legume flowers. The showy petals, beautifully marked with darker veins, are usually in shades of mauve or purple, but can also be pink scarlet, or white. Polygala myrtifolia has blooms throughout the year with a peak in spring ( August to October) when the plants flower profusely. The fruit is a small, winged capsule. Under favourable garden conditions it can grow into a small tree of about 3m, but it more typically forms a shrub 1,5-3m tall, depending on the local climate conditions.

Common names:  septemberbossie, augustusbossie, blouertjie, langelede (Afr.); ulopesi, ulapesi, umabalabala (Xho.); uchwasha (Zul.)

Growing September Bush

• Sow in seeds in Spring.
• Fill a seed flat with a mix of half peat and half perlite and moisten the medium.
• Place the seed or seeds on the flat and just barely cover them with the soil.
• Place the seed flat in a room that is about 18.3 degrees Celsius in filtered light.
• Check the seeds each day, keeping the medium slightly moist.
• The seeds should germinate in 30 to 60 days.
• Pick out the strongest seedling and plant it in a pot, keeping it in the filtered light and watering it as the medium dries.
• When the plant takes root and strengthens it is ready to be planted outdoors. in a sunny or partly sunny area  with well-drained soil.