Brunfelsia Pauciflora ‘Floribunda’

Wherever a yesterday, today and tomorrow – Brunfelsia Pauciflora ‘Floribunda’ – grows there will be the sweet and unmistakable scent of spring. It covers itself in sweet-smelling flowers in shades of deep purple, lilac and pale white. It is these three shades of flowers carried simultaneously that led to its common name ‘Yesterday, today and tomorrow’. This is an indispensable shrub for lightly shaded, cooler spots like on the south side of the house, where spring-flowering azaleas and winter-flowering camellias also flourish. Brunfelsias are at their prettiest in spring, but also flower again in other seasons. and will cover the plant in a spectacular display.

These shrubs can grow 2 – 3m tall. The growth habit is dense with elliptical, leathery leaves with a waxy sheen. The five- petalled, sweetly scented flowers in shades of deep purple, lilac and white can change colour daily and will cover the plant in a spectacular display during early spring. More flowering stages follow during summer.

Take advantage of all its lovely attributes and plant one of these slow-growing, large shrubs in a flowerbed near your bedroom window or in a big pot on your verandah. Remember this wise admonition from a fellow gardener when, on one dull winter’s day, we stood in front of an early blooming brunfelsia and moaned about inconsequential things: “Don’t think about yesterday; it will make you cry. Don’t think about tomorrow; it will make you worry. Live for and think of today; it will make you laugh!” This plant in bloom is enough to make one laugh in sheer delight.

READ MORE: Learn about spring’s most glorious flowering shrubs

When do Brunfelsia Shrubs bloom?

Brunfelsias are at their prettiest during spring, but they also bloom intermittently during other seasons.

Most suitable climate

Warm sub-tropical gardens are ideal, but the plants will also flourish in colder climates. They will even endure light frost but will be deciduous during the cooler months. They do best in regions with a  high summer rainfall.

What the Brunfelsia needs

Location: light shade is best, although full sun is tolerated provided it is not too hot. They are indispensable in shaded gardens and provide a special aromatic feast when placed in large pots close to your socialising area. They grow especially well in cooler spots on the south side of the house, where hydrangeas, azaleas and camellias also flourish.

Soil: provide rich, moist soil with liberal quantities of compost worked into it. Just like Camellias and Azaleas, Brunfelsias prefer acidic soil with a pH balance just below the neutral 7, so mulch with pine-needles, moss or acidic compost around their bases.

Water: Brunfelsias prefer lots of water during summer. You can water less frequently in winter.

Fertilizing and pruning: from spring to autumn, feed every six weeks using a potassium-rich fertilizer. Plants that grow too big for their allotted spaces can be lightly trimmed back after the main flowering stage; this will control their size and keep them tidy. Some daring gardeners also like to prune them into lollipop trees, which make stunning features. The natural growth pattern of the plant is to spread widely with numerous lateral branches, and to produce as many flowers as possible.

Pruning: Brunfelsias will need a light pruning only for neatness. This can be done after the spring flowering phase.

Watch out for this

The leaves of the Brunfelsia tend to fade to yellow, much like those of citrus, gardenias and orange jasmine, when faced with an element deficiency. To correct this, feed them with a micro-element fertilizer and mulch with pine needles or pine bark.

Another way of ensuring healthy deep-green foliage is to sprinkle a handful of nitrogen-rich fertilizer granules around the root zones and to water it in immediately thereafter. Don’t overdo this treatment at the expense of potassium-rich fertilizer though, otherwise you will have gorgeous foliage but the production of flowers will be diminished.

Caution: due to its strongly scented flowers this is not the ideal plant for hay-fever sufferers.

 In a nutshell

• Long-lived, romantic flowering shrub;
• Good candidate for shaded gardens (although shade shouldn’t be too deep);
• Pretty in pots;
• Sweet unmistakable scent that always makes you homesick when you catch its fragrance in someone else’s garden.