Early flowering Brooms

A selection of early flowering Brooms, which bloom as early as March or April. Among these spring stars, we find the Cytisus(x) praecox, its variety 'Allgold', its lovely white form 'Albus' and its hybrid 'Hollandia' which flowers pink. Bushy, exceeding a metre in all directions, these brooms are dazzling in large beds. Even earlier, but little known to gardeners, the Retama monosperma is a white broom from arid climates that often blooms in early March. The Spanish Broom, Genista hispanica, thorny, slowly forming a very wide cushion, blooms yellow and covers the ground well. It is perfect in dry soil or a limestone rockery. Also Mediterranean, native to Tenerife, tender, perfect in a pot, Cytisus racemosus Phebus forms a real ball of highly scented yellow-orange flowers from March. The 'Porlock' broom, tall, very beautiful, takes over between April and May. Not only are brooms decorative, but they are also nectar plants. Their flowering will accompany that of Japanese Quinces, Forsythias, and evergreen Ceanothus.

The broom is a generous but frugal bush, which generally thrives in lean and fairly dry soil in summer.