The Golden Wonder Senna, otherwise known as the Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ or Blueblossom, Bluebrush, Blue Blossom, Creeping Blue Blossom, Ceanothus repens, is a somewhat well known shrub plant native to the the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
This is why all the topics you need to know in order to achieve this will be covered in this Golden Wonder Senna Care Guide. Ready? Let’s go!
The basic care guidelines you need to remember for your Golden Wonder Senna are the following:
- Water: The Golden Wonder Senna grows best with watering each week. Increase the frequency of watering when it gets hot.
- Light: Keep your Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ in an environment where it can receive full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Golden Wonder Senna in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand, loam, and clay.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Golden Wonder Senna this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Golden Wonder Senna belongs to the Rhamnaceae family, the genus Ceanothus and the species Thyrsiflorus, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ (KASS-ee-uh SPLEN-did-uh).
As with other Ceanothus’s, the Golden Wonder Senna is a semi-evergreen plant, which means it will shed its leaves but only for a short period of time.
Growing Region
The Golden Wonder Senna is a plant native to the SW. Oregon to Mexico. This is why the Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ is used to growing in specific regions such as the states in the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
Knowing your plant’s native region is very useful, as it can give you tips on which environment is best for your Golden Wonder Senna. If you keep it in mind, you can try to replicate these conditions at home, and you’ll likely end with a healthier plant.
With this in mind, the Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 3 – 10 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 5b, 5a, 6b, 6a, 7a, 7b, 8b, 8a, 9b, 9a and the ideal climate zone is between 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Golden Wonder Senna is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Golden Wonder Senna actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ can grow up to 2′ – 3′ (60cm – 90cm) in 2′ – 3′ (60cm – 90cm) and 6′ – 10′ (180cm – 3m) in 6′ – 10′ (180cm – 3m).
These dimensions make the Golden Wonder Senna a relatively large shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful spreading shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 72″ – 120″ (180cm – 300cm) free so the Golden Wonder Senna can spread to its best extent.
Water
In terms of watering, the Golden Wonder Senna is a fairly simple plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ grows best with watering each week. Increase the frequency of watering when it gets hot.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively low to average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Golden Wonder Senna in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage, moist, and occasionally dry properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
However, in our experience, the best solution to knowing the right amount of water for your Golden Wonder Senna is with the ‘thumb’ technique. Basically, you insert your finger into the soil, and based if you feel the soil moist or dry, you determine if it needs any water, which is the most appropriate way to go about watering your leafy friend.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Golden Wonder Senna prefers to have soil with good drainage, moist, and occasionally dry properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand, loam, and clay.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably neutral to alkaline soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Golden Wonder Senna requires full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a semi-evergreen plant, the Golden Wonder Senna will shed its leaves but only for a short period of time.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (mid, late), and during the summer (early).
Flowers
You can expect your Golden Wonder Senna to flower around the spring months from April to June (spring).
In particular, this shrub is well known for its long bloom season and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Golden Wonder Senna produces some beautiful yellow, or blue and white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Golden Wonder Senna have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with a alternate organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Golden Wonder Senna is well known for being able to attract butterflies and birds, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Additionally, it has a special tolerance for clay soil and drought conditions, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ will be fine.
Garden
How should you then organize your garden to include your new Golden Wonder Senna? Here are some recommendations by expert gardeners.
Most Cassia Splendida ‘Golden’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most tropical gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of informal and cottage, city and courtyard, and in mediterranean garden styles.
In particular, the Golden Wonder Senna’s best location within your garden is in ground covers, banks and slopes, beds and borders, and in wall-side borders, others use it for landscaping in a border, or a coastal exposure.
Companion Plants
Golden Wonder Senna’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Bougainvillea, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Solanum rantonnetii Royal Rob will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Golden Wonder Senna to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
