Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

Baccharis sarothroides is a species of flowering shrub known by the common names broom baccharis and desert broom. It grows up to 12 feet tall and up to 6 feet wide. The leaves are small and thick, and tends to stay bright green through the year in the foothills and areas with around 15" of rainfall per year. The plant goes summer deciduous and loses its leaves in the drier desert regions. It flowers abundantly in the summer, often completely covered with white or cream covered puffy flowers. This plant is native to northern Mexico and the southwestern United States, growing in coastal sage scrub and inland scrub plant communities, usually in dry canyons and plains below 1000 feet. In California it is limited to the southern part of the state. It is a useful plant for a screen, slope stabilization or filling in large empty areas. The voluminous seeds may be considered a nuisance.

Plant type

Shrub

Size

3 - 12 ft Tall
6 ft Wide

Form

Upright, Rounded

Growth rate

Fast, Moderate

Dormancy

Evergreen

Fragrance

None

Calscape icon
Color

Yellow, Cream, White

Flowering season

Winter

Special uses

Bank stabilization, Hedge

Sun

Full Sun

Water

Low, Very Low

Summer irrigation

Max 2x / month once established

Ease of care

Easy

Cold tolerance

Tolerates cold to 25° F

Soil drainage

Fast, Medium

Soil description

Tolerates a variety of soils. Tolerates sodic soil..
Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Maintenance

Prune in fall to shape and improve appearance

Propagation

For propagating by seed: No treatment.

Sunset Zones

7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Site type

Gravelly and sandy washes, flats

Plant communities

Coastal Sage Scrub, Creosote Bush Scrub, Wetland-Riparian

California Copperleaf (Acalypha californica), Chamise (Adenostema fasciculatum), California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), Chaparral Mallow (Malacothamnus fasciculatus), Brittlebush (Encelia spp.), Desert Agave (Agave deserti), Mojave Yucca (Yucca shidigera), Creosote (Larrea tridentata), Big Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata), and cactus species

Bats
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

1 confirmed and 16 likely

Confirmed Likely

Schinia oculata

Common Gray

Anavitrinella pampinaria

Orange Tortrix Moth

Argyrotaenia franciscana

Aristotelia argentifera