Close your eyes and breathe in. That sweet, vanilla-like scent with hints of cherry pie? That’s Heliotrope. Also known as Cherry Pie or Garden Heliotrope, this bushy, tender perennial shrub forms a compact, rounded mound of handsome, oval, dark green leaves with prominent veins and a rough, wrinkled texture. From late spring through autumn, it produces large, showy clusters of tiny, tubular flowers in stunning shades of deep purple to violet-blue, often lightening with age. The fragrance is powerful and intoxicating, perfuming the entire garden.
Native to the Andean regions of Peru, Bolivia, and Colombia, Heliotrope has proven wonderfully suited to South African gardens as a summer-flowering annual or container specimen. It thrives in full sun to part shade—at least 4–6 hours of direct light for the most abundant flowers and strongest fragrance. In hotter inland areas, some afternoon shade helps protect it from fierce midday sun. It prefers fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil kept consistently moist. Sensitive to frost, it’s best treated as a summer annual in all but the mildest coastal gardens, or grown in movable containers. Reaching 30–60cm tall and wide in a single season, it’s perfect for containers, hanging baskets, borders, or near seating areas where its perfume can be fully appreciated.
Key Features:
- Intoxicating sweet, vanilla-like, cherry-pie scent that perfumes the garden for months
- Large clusters of rich violet to purple-blue flowers from spring to autumn
- Handsome, prominently veined, dark green leaves
- A magnet for butterflies; ideal for borders, containers, or hanging baskets
Gardening Note: Plant in well-drained, fertile soil in full sun to partial shade—afternoon shade helps in hot summer areas. Water regularly and consistently; do not let the soil dry out completely. Deadhead spent clusters to encourage continuous blooming. In colder inland areas, treat as a summer annual or grow in movable containers. Prune back in early spring to maintain a compact shape.
