Fan flower

Sun

Full sun to partial shade; flowers best with at least 6 hours of sun. Light afternoon shade helps in very hot inland gardens.

Water

Water regularly while establishing. Once established, allow the soil surface to dry slightly between waterings; containers need more frequent checks than plants in the ground.

Soil

Well-drained sandy or loamy soil, or a free-draining container compost. Avoid heavy, persistently wet soil.

Height

0.5-1 ft (0.15-0.3 m)

Spread

1-2 ft (0.3-0.6 m)

Flowers

Late spring to autumn, often until frost; usually blue-purple, with pink and white selections also available. Flowering may continue longer in frost-free climates.

Foliage

Evergreen. Green, slightly fleshy, spoon-shaped to lance-shaped leaves, often with toothed edges, on spreading or trailing stems.

Growth

Fast during warm weather.

Care needed

Low

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Low allergen

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   0.7 ft (0.22 m)

   full size

About 2 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Native to

Australia

Growth rate

Fast

• Plant outside after frost danger has passed and the soil has warmed.
• Use containers with drainage holes and do not leave them standing in water.
• Water at soil level when the surface begins to dry; avoid repeated severe wilting.
• Feed container plants every 2-4 weeks during active growth with a dilute flowering-plant fertiliser, following the label.
• If keeping plants through winter, move them into a bright, frost-free place and water sparingly.

Pruning. Pinch young shoots to encourage branching, and lightly trim straggly stems during summer to keep plants compact. Deadheading is usually unnecessary.

Spring

Pot up young plants and gradually acclimatise indoor-grown plants to outdoor conditions.

Late spring

Plant out after the last frost, leaving room for stems to spread.

Summer

Check baskets and pots frequently for water and feed regularly while plants are growing.

Midsummer

Lightly trim long, sparse stems to encourage fresh branching.

Late summer

Take softwood cuttings if you want young plants to overwinter under cover.

Autumn

Before frost, bring plants you want to keep into bright, frost-free shelter, or remove them when their annual display ends.

Winter

Keep sheltered plants barely moist and check for aphids and whiteflies.

• Trail it over hanging baskets and window boxes for a long season of flower.
• Use it around upright container plants such as pelargoniums or ornamental grasses to soften the pot edge.
• Plant along sunny paths or raised-bed edges where its spreading stems can spill over.
• Combine blue-purple selections with white alyssum or yellow flowering annuals for clear colour contrast.

Garden styles it suits: Australian native, Coastal, Modern courtyard, Cottage garden, Small-space and Low-maintenance.

Plant it with: Pelargoniums, Calibrachoa, Sweet alyssum, Verbena and Dwarf fountain grass.

Wildlife: Flowers provide nectar for bees and other visiting insects.

• Root rot in waterlogged soil: improve drainage, empty saucers and let the soil surface dry slightly before watering again.
• Aphids on young shoots: rinse them off with water or use insecticidal soap labelled for the plant.
• Whiteflies, especially under cover: inspect leaf undersides and treat with insecticidal soap if needed, following the label.
• Sparse flowering or stretched growth in shade: move containers to a sunnier position and lightly trim weak stems.

Not known to be toxic to cats, dogs, horses or people. Specific safety data are limited, especially for horses; no poisonous part is established, but it is not an edible plant.

• White fan-flower (Scaevola albida)

  Usually has smaller leaves and smaller white to pale mauve fan-shaped flowers; fan flower generally has larger leaves and showier blooms.

• Trailing lobelia (Lobelia erinus)

  Has finer foliage and flowers with two small upper lobes and three larger lower lobes, rather than five lobes arranged together as a one-sided fan.

Scaevola comes from Latin meaning 'left-handed', referring to the one-sided flowers, which also give the plant its common name.

Propagation. Take softwood cuttings in spring or summer and root them in a moist, free-draining propagation mix. Seed is another option for the species, but named selections may not come true; check restrictions before propagating protected cultivars.

Accepted botanical name

Scaevola aemula

Native range

New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0) and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.