African Wormwood

African Wormwood Care

Artemisia Afra

What is the plant

Artemisia afra is a perennial woody shrub, which grows up to 2 m tall with a leafy, hairy and ridged stem (Van Wyk et al., 1997). Its leaves are of soft texture, dark green on the adaxial surface and a lighter green on the abaxial surface, reaching a length of 8 cm and a width of 4 cm.

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Humidity

Normal

Lighting

Full Sun

Temperature

20°C - 30°C

Hardiness zone

4 - 9

Difficulty

Easy

How to Care for the Plant

Water
As with most silver-leaved perennials, Artemisia plants are very drought tolerant. They will need regular water until the plants are established, but they can take care of themselves after that.
Fertilizer
Artemisias do not like overly rich soil. Since artemisias do not like rich soil, no supplemental fertilizer should be necessary, especially if you are regularly adding organic matter to your beds.
Sunlight
Artemisias grow best in full sun, but some types will tolerate some shade, provided they get up to six hours of sun.

Disease diagnosis

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Soil
With a few exceptions, such as Artemisia lactiflora, Artemisias need well-draining soil on the dry side. If left sitting in damp soil, they will decline and/or be short-lived.
Additional
Official lists of poisonous garden plants generally list Atemisia as a class 4 toxin, meaning that it is capable of causing dermatitis (skin) reactions upon contact. There is also some evidence that the concentrated artemisinin oil, sometimes taken as a folk medicine remedy or as an ingredient in cancer-fighting drugs, may lead to liver damage. But such effects are not possible with accidental ingestion of garden plants.
Popularity
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