How to Grow and Care for Brooms

French broom (Genista monspessulana) is an evergreen shrub native to the Mediterranean region. This species is often sold as a houseplant or for planters for gardens. However, it can become an invasive species if introduced into a new region.

Scorpion broom is a shrub producing yellow flowers. When an insect lands on a flower, the flower petals open explosively, covering the insect with its pollen. By midsummer, it loses most or all of its leaves.

Needle-leaved broom is native to the western Mediterranean. This flowering legume shrub reproduces by seed, forming a dense thicket. It has been introduced in other parts of the world, where it's become invasive, displacing native plants.

As both its common and scientific names suggest (tinctoria means used as a dye), the dyer's greenweed has been used as a natural yellow dye since ancient times. It's a popular garden plant, with numerous cultivars available on market. The most famous cultivar is 'Royal Gold', which gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

Hairy greenweed is a creeping plant that thrives in hot, sunny areas and is drought tolerant. This deciduous shrub can fix nitrogen and provides shelter for invertebrates, insects, and arthropods. Its Latin name (Genista pilosa) comes from Genista meaning "broom," while pilosa translates to "long, soft hairs," referring to the silvery hairs that adorn the underside of its shiny green leaves.