Island snapdragon + cv

Galvezia speciosa

Description

The Island snapdragon is an evergreen shrub with arching stems that develops a dense and sprawling habit, growing to 3-4 ft. high and 8-10 ft. wide. Leaves and stems are smooth and distinctively lime green; small clusters of red tubular ﬂowers that grow on the tips of stems are bright and colorful from spring through mid-summer.

The Island snapdragon is native to several offshore islands of California where it grows in scrub vegetation with moist winters and dry summers. It has proven to be a very popular plant for hummingbirds, and is well adapted to Inland Empire climate conditions in full sun, on many types of soil and with low amounts of summer moisture. It provides fresh green foliage character and intense red flowering along borders, on banks and around bioswales.

Several cultivars of Island snapdragon are available from different sources. One choice, G. s. ‘Firecracker’ is a smaller and tighter growing selection, 2-3 ft. wide and 4-5 ft. across. It’s leaves and stems are covered with fuzzy hairs and it produces larger deep red flowers than the species. G. s. ‘Bosa Roca’ is another compact selection with deep red flowers, fuzzy stems and dense mounding habit. The flowers on this cultivar tend to flair open like the popular annual snapdragon.

Plant Type: Shrub, Native
Foliage Character: Evergreen
Habit: Mounding, Dense, Compact
Growth Rate: Fast
Foliage Color: Pale green
Flower Color: Red
Flower Season: Summer, Spring
Soil Adaptations: Well-draining soil
Exposure Adaptations: Morning sun, All day sun, Partial sun
Function: Hummingbird plant, Foundations, Flowering accent plant, Container plant, Banks, Background plant
Height: 3 ft. – 4 ft.
Width: 8 ft. – 10 ft.

Watering Schedule: Low 1

For most situations, we recommend watering deeply every 3-4 weeks after establishment.

Learn how to apply this watering schedule to your landscape on our How to water waterwise and California native plants page.

Important Notes

These are general guidelines. Always observe and adjust as necessary for your landscape.
If it rains over 1” you will likely not need to water for at least another 3-4 weeks. Before watering again, check the soil. It should be significantly dry at least 4” below the soil surface before watering.
If you have a “smart timer” or weather sensitive irrigation controller, it is best not to use the automatic weather adjusting features for plants in this category. While very useful for watering higher water demanding plants, those in this category have natural drought adaptations which mean they do not need to be watered more in warm weather. Using the weather adjusting features will result in either overwatering in summer or underwatering in fall and spring.
It is important to group plants with the same water needs together in the landscape to avoid needing to over or under water plants when running your irrigation system.

If grown in shade, and looking “leggier” than desired, pinch back stems to encourage bushier growth (5). If damaged by frost in the winter, wait a few weeks before pruning damaged areas. You will want to be sure of the extent of the damage first, and the damaged parts can help protect healthy tissue if the cold spell lasts over a few nights (1). If the plant looks to be in need of “refreshing,” it can be cut all the way to the ground in late winter, before spring growth, and it will grow back, rejuvenated (7). References