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Psoralea pinnata
The Blue Pea shrub is a showy shrub from South Africa. It is one of those very fast growers which is lovely for a short while, but becomes leggy if unpruned. The rich green pinnate leaves look like a conifers but are soft to touch. Very fragrant bright blue pea flowers are striped with white and are borne from spring through to early summer. Such is the abundance of the flowers that they smother the leaves and always attract favourable comment.Bees and Bumblebees are also attracted to the flowers.
Psoralea grows readily in sand and freely drained soil. With summer moisture it will grow a lot more lush and bushy while in dry sands will be a thinner specimen.Tolerant of light frosts and semi shade or full sun. Expect at least a metre in growth per year. Prune back to half way after flowering otherwise it will get away on you. Unpruned trees will produce seed that self sows readily. Eventually stem borer will eat into the soft wood of this tree causing branches to die and general unthriftyness .But enjoy this tree while young as a quick filler while slower growing specimens are becoming established.
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