There’s a reason Helichrysum has earned names like “everlasting,” “strawflower,” and “golden immortelle.” Across Africa, Eurasia, Madagascar, and even parts of Australia, this remarkable genus has adapted into an astonishing range of forms – from compact alpine cushions on windswept peaks to sprawling coastal pioneers on dunes, and tall, aromatic shrubs rising through savanna grassland. Many species seem almost sculpted for harshness: felted leaves that reflect heat, resinous scent glands that reduce water loss, and papery bracts that hold their colour long after flowering.

In southern Africa especially, Helichrysum becomes a signature of wild landscapes. Some species carpet high Drakensberg slopes like silver mats; others form tidy, upright tufts in montane grassland; and some are so specialised that they cling to cliff faces or root into shallow pockets of stony soil. The flowers, often arranged in tight button-clusters or open daisy-like heads, glow in tones of yellow, cream, white, pink, copper, red, and rose – and in many species the “petals” are actually brilliantly coloured bracts that preserve their beauty even when dried.

Beyond their ornamental appeal, Helichrysum carries deep cultural importance. Many species are traditionally used for fragrance, medicinal preparations, ceremonial burning, and as protective plants. For modern growers, they offer the irresistible combination of wild provenance, drought resilience, and striking textures – a true collector’s genus, equally suited to naturalistic gardens, rockeries, alpine troughs and habitat restoration planting.

Helichrysum glomeratum

If you want a grassland everlasting that can naturalise into bold sweeps, Helichrysum glomeratum is a standout: a rhizomatous perennial that often forms large colonies and then erupts into tight rounded clusters of tiny yellow-tipped heads. It’s an excellent choice for meadow-style plantings, indigenous grassland gardens, and growers who like plants that look “at home” in a naturalistic setting.

Indigenous to South Africa, the plant grows from rhizomes, with erect stems to around 450 mm and densely leafy, silvery-hairy foliage. The heads are very small but extremely numerous, congested into rounded clusters; the bracts are described as brownish outside with inner bracts tipped bright canary-yellow, and the flowers are yellow.

It occurs in open grassland from the eastern highlands of Mpumalanga south through the Free State around Harrismith/Witsieshoek, the Midlands and uplands of KwaZulu-Natal, and further to East Griqualand/Transkei and the Amatola Mountains (Eastern Cape). Flowering is recorded February to May (mainly March–April), giving you a reliable late-summer to autumn display.