Scoparia dulcis (Sweetbroom or Licorice-weed)

Description

Scoparia dulcis is native from the Southeastern US (SC, GA, FL, MS, SC, and TX )  and southward  into the American Tropics. It is rare in SC (only reported from Beaufort and Colleton  counties) and uncommon in Georgia.  Flowering from June to September (and later in mild years); it is pollinated by Native Leaf-cutter Bees.  It is now naturalized in tropical and subtropical regions around the world.  Almost everywhere it grows, it is considered a valuable medicinal plant for both humans and animals. It is used for a variety of internal and external ailments including fever,  diabetes, hypertension, cough, bronchitis and dementia.  Medical researchers are  confirming the effectiveness of many of its uses.This is a powerful herb. Any medicine can have potentially harmful side effects. Conduct your own research and consult with medical professionals before experimenting with it.  Besides medicines,  sweet-broom has also been used to make brooms, kill parasites, and keep water cold.

Sweet-broom hitch-hiked into the nursery several years ago with plants that I had rescued from roadside construction in Beaufort Co., SC.  Ever since, they have been growing in the nursery. Sometimes, they  live through the winter..sometimes they don’t, but I am always bless me with new seedlings in and among the other plants. They prefer full sun or part shade but tolerate all but the wettest and driest soils. I have seen them growing in acidic bogs.. and in calcareous roadsides, pH does not seem to be much of an issue for them.  I have not seen them in saline areas here, but they are used to stabilize dunes in South America.  This suggests that they are salt wind and salt water tolerant. The leaves are very strong tasting, so I suspect that they are  deer resistant. Their airy habit makes them  good candidates for  deer baffles.  Although, they will readily naturalize in your garden, they will not “take it over”. They adapt to very harsh conditions, but they prefer to grow where other vegetation is sparse.  They don’t have extensive root systems or thick stems. Even the biggest ones are easy to cut back or pull out. I only have a few available at any time. If you would like several, contact me about contract growing them for you. Click on the links to learn more about Sweet-broom