Apricot globemallow

Year-round

Apricot globemallow is a low, silvery-leaved shrub that covers itself in bowl-shaped orange to apricot flowers. It wants full sun, very little water once settled in, and soil that drains well.

• Give it full sun all day. It gets leggy and blooms less in shade.
• In heavy black clay, plant it high on a slight mound or amend the planting hole with coarse sand or expanded shale so water does not sit at the roots; in the sandier soils west of the metro it drains fine on its own but will need more frequent watering through the first summer while roots establish.
• Water deeply once a week for the first growing season, then taper off. Established plants only need supplemental water during extended dry stretches.
• Cut the whole plant back by about a third to half in late winter to keep it compact and rebloom well.
• Keep it out of foot traffic areas and away from irrigation heads that spray it daily, since wet feet are the main way this plant fails.

Summer

Once established, this plant is built for North Texas summer heat and needs very little help even through the hardest weeks of July and August.

• Water only during extended dry spells with no rain for two or more weeks, and even then just a deep soak, not daily watering.
• If you planted this spring, keep giving it one deep watering a week through its first July and August, since a first-year plant can still die in a summer drought.
• Expect bloom to slow or pause in the hottest weeks. It will pick back up as temperatures ease.
• Leave spent flower stalks in place if you want seed pods to form for reseeding, or trim lightly to keep a neater shape.

Its silvery, fine-textured foliage stays neat-looking through drought stress even when nearby plants wilt, which helps the bed read as maintained.

Fall

Fall is a quiet season for this plant in North Texas. Bloom slows as days shorten, and it is not the ideal planting window for this particular shrub even though it is prime tree and shrub season generally.

• If you must plant in fall, do it in September or early October so roots have time to establish before the first freeze in mid November.
• Cut back any leggy or sprawling stems by about a third to tidy the shape before winter.
• Reduce watering as temperatures drop and rainfall picks up in October and November.
• Let any remaining seed pods dry and drop if you want volunteer seedlings next spring.

A late-season trim keeps the plant from sprawling over a walkway or curb edge as growth slows for the year.

Winter

Winter is dormant, low-maintenance season. North Texas winters are mild with short hard freezes, and this plant handles them fine once established.

• Cut the whole plant back by about a third to half in late February, just before spring growth starts, to keep it compact and encourage heavy spring bloom.
• Skip supplemental watering unless the winter is unusually dry, since dormant roots need very little.
• During a hard freeze or Arctic outbreak, established plants do not need covering, but a first-winter planting can be protected with a frost cloth overnight.
• Leave the cut-back stems and any fallen leaves as light mulch over winter rather than clearing the bed bare.

A late-February cutback right before spring keeps the bed looking deliberately pruned rather than dead through the dormant months.

Spring

Spring is peak bloom and the best time to plant this one in North Texas, while the soil is still cool and rain is more reliable.

• Plant new nursery starts anytime from March through May, after the last frost in mid March.
• Water new plantings two to three times a week for the first month to help roots establish, then cut back once you see new growth.
• Deadhead spent flower stalks to encourage more blooms through the season.
• Watch for a flush of small caterpillars folding leaves together into little nests. That is normal skipper butterfly activity, not a pest problem, so leave them alone.

A blooming, tidy mound of orange flowers by the front walk reads as intentional cottage-garden color, not an untended patch.

Year-round

Apricot globemallow is a low, silvery-leaved shrub that covers itself in bowl-shaped orange to apricot flowers. It wants full sun, very little water once settled in, and soil that drains well.

• Give it full sun all day. It gets leggy and blooms less in shade.
• In heavy black clay, plant it high on a slight mound or amend the planting hole with coarse sand or expanded shale so water does not sit at the roots; in the sandier soils west of the metro it drains fine on its own but will need more frequent watering through the first summer while roots establish.
• Water deeply once a week for the first growing season, then taper off. Established plants only need supplemental water during extended dry stretches.
• Cut the whole plant back by about a third to half in late winter to keep it compact and rebloom well.
• Keep it out of foot traffic areas and away from irrigation heads that spray it daily, since wet feet are the main way this plant fails.

Summer

Once established, this plant is built for North Texas summer heat and needs very little help even through the hardest weeks of July and August.

• Water only during extended dry spells with no rain for two or more weeks, and even then just a deep soak, not daily watering.
• If you planted this spring, keep giving it one deep watering a week through its first July and August, since a first-year plant can still die in a summer drought.
• Expect bloom to slow or pause in the hottest weeks. It will pick back up as temperatures ease.
• Leave spent flower stalks in place if you want seed pods to form for reseeding, or trim lightly to keep a neater shape.

Its silvery, fine-textured foliage stays neat-looking through drought stress even when nearby plants wilt, which helps the bed read as maintained.

Fall

Fall is a quiet season for this plant in North Texas. Bloom slows as days shorten, and it is not the ideal planting window for this particular shrub even though it is prime tree and shrub season generally.

• If you must plant in fall, do it in September or early October so roots have time to establish before the first freeze in mid November.
• Cut back any leggy or sprawling stems by about a third to tidy the shape before winter.
• Reduce watering as temperatures drop and rainfall picks up in October and November.
• Let any remaining seed pods dry and drop if you want volunteer seedlings next spring.

A late-season trim keeps the plant from sprawling over a walkway or curb edge as growth slows for the year.

Winter

Winter is dormant, low-maintenance season. North Texas winters are mild with short hard freezes, and this plant handles them fine once established.

• Cut the whole plant back by about a third to half in late February, just before spring growth starts, to keep it compact and encourage heavy spring bloom.
• Skip supplemental watering unless the winter is unusually dry, since dormant roots need very little.
• During a hard freeze or Arctic outbreak, established plants do not need covering, but a first-winter planting can be protected with a frost cloth overnight.
• Leave the cut-back stems and any fallen leaves as light mulch over winter rather than clearing the bed bare.

A late-February cutback right before spring keeps the bed looking deliberately pruned rather than dead through the dormant months.

Spring

Spring is peak bloom and the best time to plant this one in North Texas, while the soil is still cool and rain is more reliable.

• Plant new nursery starts anytime from March through May, after the last frost in mid March.
• Water new plantings two to three times a week for the first month to help roots establish, then cut back once you see new growth.
• Deadhead spent flower stalks to encourage more blooms through the season.
• Watch for a flush of small caterpillars folding leaves together into little nests. That is normal skipper butterfly activity, not a pest problem, so leave them alone.

A blooming, tidy mound of orange flowers by the front walk reads as intentional cottage-garden color, not an untended patch.