Plumbago auriculata matching the sky

It has been said that Plumbago auriculata stands for the hospitality of the South African skies. Seen like this, the sky needs no representative, yet the likeness is undisputed. Blue skies everywhere on earth can be hospitable when temperatures are comfortable and water is not scarce.

Feeling welcome when visiting anywhere does happen when familiar signs are present, including such sky blue ones. This plant occurs naturally widespread across much of South Africa, and many people plant blue plumbago. Whether spotted scrambling in scrub or thicket in the veld, or met neatly trimmed to gardener taste, P. auriculata appears at home, and makes people feel that smidgin more so as well.

Easily named by many, the plant appears effortless when given a chance by gardeners. For this is a generous grower, not thrown by heat, wind, poor soil, competition from what grows next to them, or full exposure on coast or inland. Resilience translates to generous performance, forgiving gardener neglect, as proven by flowering almost always. No wonder it is recognised as a friend in so many parts of the world (Pooley, et al, 2025; Euston-Brown and Kruger, 2023; Manning, 2009; iNaturalist).