Plant of the Month: Winter Cassia - butterfly bush

by Mary Townsley

If you are looking for a perennial shrub that brings a profusion of stunning yellow flowers at a time of the year when most of the garden is starting to go dormant, look no further than Winter Cassia. You may find this semi-evergreen shrub sold in local nurseries as Senna bicapsularis or Senna pendula. Plant it in a sunny location with well-drained soil and mulch well.  While Winter Cassia is hardy in zones 9a-11, if you live in zone 8, plant in a large pot that can be moved indoors in cold weather. Once established it will require little care aside from pruning and watering in drought. Pinching new growth up to the beginning of September will encourage branching and increase the number of blossoms. Aside from cheering up the garden, Winter Cassia also provides nectar for pollinators and is a host plant for cloudless sulfur butterflies.