Ammobium alatum Grandiflorum

The Ammobium alatum 'Grandiflorum' is a herbaceous plant also known as Winged Everlasting or Sand Everlasting. Native to Australia, it is a perennial cultivated as an annual in our region. It forms a rosette of lanceolate, woolly white to silvery-gray foliage, from which medium-sized stems rise in summer bearing small white flower heads, with several rows of ligules, surrounding a prominent yellow centre. It is grown in full sun in poor, light, well-drained, sandy soil.

The winged everlasting belongs to the Asteraceae family. It is native to Australia, specifically New South Wales and Queensland, where it grows in sparse woods. The plant forms a rosette of lanceolate leaves, with a woolly white appearance giving a silvery-gray aspect, which can reach 20 cm long. The branching stems, of bright green colour, rise and can reach about 60 cm in height. They bear clusters of very fine flower heads, each 3 cm in diameter, with numerous white ligules surrounding a round, yellow centre composed of tiny tubular flowers. The melliferous flowers attract bees, butterflies, and other pollinating insects. Flowering occurs from July to October. The plant can tolerate brief frosts down to -5°C provided the soil is dry.

The Ammobium alatum 'Grandiflorum' prefers light, sandy, poor, well-drained, and dry soils. Grow it in full sun. The flowers are perfect for fresh bouquets as they last a long time. They can also be dried and used in floral arrangements. Use the sand everlasting in borders, flower beds, and rock gardens. Plant it in the foreground alongside California poppies, which also thrive in poor soils, or next to artemisias or shrub salvias in a low-water garden. To make dried bouquets, the flowers should be picked before they fully open, tied together with raffia, and hung upside down in a dark, cool, dry, and well-ventilated room.