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Golden St. John's wort is a small semiwoody shrub with rich bluish-green foliage and bright golden-yellow flowers. The shrub grows in a rounded mound, 2-4 ft (0.6-1.2 m) tall with about the same width. Mature stems and branches are clothed in reddish bark that shreds and peels in thin flakes. The deciduous leaves are opposite, ovate to oblong, about 2 in (5.1 cm) long and about a 0.5 in (1.3 cm) wide. The flowers are 1-2 in (2.5-5.1 cm) across and borne in loose, spreading clusters of up to 6 flowers. The dense clump of stamens in the center of the saucer shaped flower looks like a bright yellow shaving brush. Golden St. John's wort stays in bloom most of the summer. The fruits are dry, reddish brown capsules about a half inch long. 'Sunburst' is a popular selection that has 2 in (5.1 cm) flowers and thick bushy stamens on a dense 3 ft (0.9 m) mound.
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Golden St. John's wort is a tough and attractive little shrub that deserves to be more widely planted. It's more popular as an ornamental in England than in its native country. The blue-green foliage seems to cool the hot summer landscape even as the brilliant yellow blossoms fuel the fire. In fall the plant is pretty too, covered with masses of little reddish fruits. Even in winter, the rich cinnamon colored exfoliating bark adds architectural interest. Golden St. John's wort is excellent in masses, or use it in mixed shrub borders. The little gray hairstreak butterfly lays its eggs on St. John's worts and the caterpillars eat the foliage, but rarely do they cause extensive damage. Adult butterflies sip nectar from the flowers.
Features You can always identify a St. John's wort by the little translucent glands on the undersides of the leaves (except for the species with needlelike leaves). Hold a leaf up to the light and use a hand lens to see the little round windowlike dots evenly spaced across the underside of the leaf. Steve Christman 3/1/01; updated 5/29/04
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