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 reflexum – White Everlasting

If you love compact, high-impact everlastings, Helichrysum reflexum is a collector’s gem: a twiggy mountain shrublet that finishes its stems with striking, solitary “paper daisy” heads that hold their shape beautifully. In a rock garden or alpine-style bed it reads as crisp, bright, and architectural – especially when planted where its silvery foliage can contrast with stone.

Botanically it’s a 30 – 60 cm shrublet with narrow, needle-like leaves that become strongly bent back, giving the plant a neat, bristly texture. The flower heads are large and showy, with glossy white involucral bracts; the outer bracts are lightly brown-tinged and can carry a soft rosy cast – classic everlasting “shine” with a refined, cool palette. Main flowering is late summer into autumn (mostly February to April).

Indigenous to South Africa, in the wild it’s locally common among rocky outcrops in the mountains of Mpumalanga and Eswatini (Swaziland), from the Blyde River Canyon area south to the Barberton ranges – so globally it’s a very regional southern African species. Treat it like a true rock-outcrop plant: give it sun, excellent drainage, and a gritty, mineral soil. Its best uses are ornamental (rockeries, crevice gardens, containers in climates with dry, bright winters) and for long-lasting dried heads, while still supporting small pollinators in the garden when in bloom.