Jaborosa integrifolia: a South American star

Sep 17

Sep 17 Jaborosa integrifolia: a South American star

While trimming the lawn on one of my plots, I noticed a few pure white, star-like flowers, 6cm in width, nestled amongst the green of many low-growing plants, including grass, hostas … and weeds. I’d forgotten about them, so they were a delight to see! They normally appear in very late summer and autumn, so they are right on time.

I call them my South American stars!

My late summer and autumn stars are the flowers of Jabarosa integrifolia, a native of South America. Jabarosa integrifolia is a rhizomatous', hardy, herbaceous perennial from the family Solonaceae — so it’s related to the potato! It has broad ovate green leaves that project from the ground on short stems, reaching a maximum height of 15-30cm. In my experience, this plant can spread (slowly) over quite a wide area, the leaves popping up where you least expect to see them. Jaborosa integrifolia grows best in a sunny location in well-drained soil. I think I’d get more flowers if I controlled weeds and grass in the area where it grows better.

The common name for Jaborosa integrifolia is ‘springblossom’. This plant is definitely not a spring flowerer in the UK, so I wondered whether the name was relevant to bloom time in it’s native environment. I decided to look at a few South American countries. A little research showed me that springtime in Argentina and Brazil, where Jaborosa is endemic, coincides with autumn in Europe. That makes sense. As I mentioned earlier, my plants tend to start throwing up the odd flower in late summer and can carry on until mid-autumn if the temperatures do not drop too low. While we do seem to be having a bit of an Indian Summer this week, there are distinct signs of autumn all around me and in the air. Days are getting shorter, and the leaves of some deciduous trees are beginning to change colour and fall.