Heliotropium arborescens ‘Fragrant Delight’ (Purple heliotrope)

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Heliotropium arborescens ‘Fragrant Delight’

Purple heliotrope

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Boraginaceae	Borages or forget-me-nots
Genus	Heliotropium	From the Greek helios, “sun,” and trope, “turning,” thus meaning “sun-turning,” either a reference to the summer solstice when the first described species bloomed, or to the turning of flowers toward the sun, a characteristic of many species known as heliotropism
Species	arborescens	Woody or tree-like, becoming like a tree
Cultivar	‘Fragrant Delight’

About plant names...

The wild version of this heliotrope comes from the Peruvian Andes. During the Victorian era in England, it became popular, and many cultivars have been developed. Thomas Jefferson was among those who planted it, but the wild plant is not found in North America.

Identification: Plants are 12-18" (30-45 cm) in height (rarely up to 6' (1.8 m), with deep purple flowers that continue through much of the growing season. Not everybody agrees on the flowers' scent, variously compared to vanilla, cherry pie, or even grape popsicles, but everybody agrees that they smell great. Leaves are veined and rough, 2-3" (5-7.6 cm) long, and sharp-tipped.

Online References:

Gardenality

Desert-tropicals.com (Heliotropium arborescens)

The National Gardening Association

California Lutheran University

Heliotropium arborescens ‘Fragrant Delight’ description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

8/1/2009 · Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay, Maine
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

8/1/2009 · Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay, Maine
≈ 5 × 4½" (13 × 11 cm)

Range: Zones 9a-11:

About this map...