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Violaceae FAMILY

Hymenanthera dentata

Hymenanthera dentata

Edibility
0/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Shrub
Growth—

Succeeds in a sunny position in most soils[1]. Prefers a moderately fertile well-drained but moisture-retentive soil in a sunny sheltered position[2]. Plants are frost-tender and so cannot be grown outdoors in Britain[3]. They tolerate temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[4] though this cannot be translated directly to British gardens due to our cooler summers and longer, colder and wetter winters. An alpine form of this species does exist and this should be hardier than the type[4]. The very closely related H. angustifolia. DC., which is considered by some botanists to be no more than a variety of this species, is quite hardy at Kew and is said to tolerate temperatures down to about -10°c[2]. Even if the two plants are separate species, then H. angustifolia is likely to have the same uses as this plant[PFAF].

Propagation

Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing the seed in late winter or early spring in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 4 - 5cm with a heel, mid summer in a headily shaded frame. Pot up in spring. Good percentage[5]. Cuttings of mature side-shoots, 4 - 5cm with a heel, autumn in a cold frame. Lift in the following mid spring. High percentage[5]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Hymenanthera+dentata>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. — Thomas. G. S. · Murray · 1992 · ISBN 0-7195-5043-2 ↩︎Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  3. [3]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  4. [4]Australian Native Plants. — Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. · Collins. (Australia) · 1988 · ISBN 0-7322-0021-0 ↩︎A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.
  5. [5]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  6. [6]Flora of Victoria. — Ewart. A. J. · University Press; Melbourne · 1930 ↩︎A flora of eastern Australia, it is rather short on information that is useful to the plant project.
  7. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎