Tips for Cultivating and Maintaining Brass Buttons

A distinctive perennial native to New Zealand serves as a resilient ground cover for landscaping purposes.

Brass buttons is a distinctive perennial native to New Zealand, capable of thriving in diverse climatic conditions. Standing at a mere 1/2 to 2 inches in height, it offers gardeners a unique groundcover option to enhance terrariums, fairy gardens, and flowerbeds. Additionally, it serves as a turf alternative in temperate regions and can fill gaps between paving stones, as it withstands light foot traffic. The plant features attractive purple-gray and green fern-like leaves, and its vibrant yellow, daisy-like flowers provide a striking contrast, earning it its common name.

Brass buttons can be cultivated in either spring or autumn, typically using potted nursery plants or divisions of roots. Its rhizomes rapidly expand, creating thick mats, and in certain areas of California, it is considered somewhat invasive.

Light

In the temperate conditions of New Zealand, brass button plants flourish in sunlight, yet in regions experiencing hot summers, they require shade during the afternoon. Interestingly, brass buttons can also survive in complete shade, although the flowering will be limited.

Soil

Brass buttons plants thrive in light, well-aerated soil with shallow roots, requiring careful preparation prior to planting. Dense or clayey soils can hinder their growth, restricting their effectiveness as ground cover. If your garden features compacted soil, it’s advisable to enrich it with ample compost or leaf mold prior to planting. These plants favor an acidic soil pH, ideally between 5.5 and 6.8.

Water

In its natural environment, the brass buttons plant thrives in wet locations. To achieve optimal color and health, ensure your plants remain consistently moist, but be cautious not to overwater, as this can lead to root rot. Applying mulch during the winter can help maintain moisture in the roots.

Climate and Moisture Levels

The ideal environment for cultivating brass buttons plants features cool and damp conditions, reminiscent of a typical spring day in cities like Seattle or London. However, such climates are not commonly found everywhere, which is why it’s a blessing that brass buttons plants can thrive in a range of conditions. In hotter and drier regions, you can assist these plants by placing them in a shadier spot and providing them with occasional misting.

Fertilizer

If you supply the appropriate soil, there’s no need to fertilize brass buttons plants. In regions with poor soil, a periodic application of compost will suffice to nourish the plants.

Varieties of Brass Buttons

In addition to the well-known Leptinella squalida, which features light green, year-round foliage, there are several other varieties of brass button plants that you can cultivate.

• ‘Platt’s Black’ is a variety named in honor of Jane Platt, a gardener who found this plant in her garden. It features deep, nearly black leaves adorned with light green tips.
• Leptinella gruveri, commonly referred to as miniature brass buttons, mini fairy fern, or dwarf New Zealand brass buttons, features small greenish blooms and is frequently chosen as a substitute for grass due to its uniform coloration.
• Leptinella minor, commonly referred to as ‘Alpine brass buttons,’ are petite ferns characterized by their rich green and bronze hues. They reach a height of approximately one inch, forming a dense carpet that can also serve as a lawn.

Pruning

Due to their compact height, brass buttons plants do not require deadheading. If you cultivate them as a substitute for grass, you can trim them at the end of the summer to keep the area looking neat.

Distributing Brass Buttons

Brass buttons are remarkably simple to propagate, as they tend to spread rapidly through rhizomes under optimal growing conditions. The ideal season for propagation is spring. Here are some straightforward steps to follow:

1. Excavate a section of the plant, ensuring the roots remain intact, and separate it.
2. Transplant the separated plant into the soil.
3. Ensure the transplant remains damp but not waterlogged as it settles in.

A Guide to Cultivating Brass Buttons from Seeds

You can plant seeds indoors using a seed-starting mix approximately eight weeks prior to the expected last frost date in your region during the spring. For optimal results, maintain a warm environment for the seed tray, ideally around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Seeds typically germinate within 2 to 3 weeks.

The seeds are minuscule and are located within the small fruits that remain after the golden blossoms fade. Gathering and sowing these seeds can be quite challenging, which is why root division is the preferred method of propagation.

Transplanting and Replanting Brass Buttons

Brass buttons thrive in nearly any type of commercial potting mix, including soil-less blends, sandy cactus mixes, or nutrient-rich loam. When repotting, avoid creating a hole, as their shallow roots require minimal soil coverage. Instead, place the plants on the soil surface and carefully press and gather the soil around them to hold them securely.

Brass buttons plants bring a unique charm to terrariums and fairy gardens, with their feathery leaves and purplish tint creating a lovely contrast against smaller plants like baby’s tears or kalanchoe. In the nurturing setting of a container, these plants tend to grow rapidly, so it’s advisable to divide them periodically to maintain their size.

Frequent Insects and Plant Illnesses

This plant experiences very few issues with pests and diseases. In the spring, aphids may become a minor annoyance on the fresh leaves. You can easily remove them with a powerful stream of water. Additionally, plants that are stressed due to lack of moisture are more vulnerable to mites.

Frequent Issues Associated with Brass Buttons

Brass buttons are simple to cultivate, though they may encounter some minor issues. If you notice any of the following, it’s important to take action to resolve the problem.

Leaves Changing to Brown

Brass button plants do not withstand drought well, and if they become too dry, they may show signs of browning at the edges of their leaves or may even lose some of their leaves.

Burnt Foliage

Brass buttons prefer not to thrive in excessive sunlight. It’s best to steer clear of extremely bright and hot areas, as this plant is susceptible to scorching and requires a moderately humid atmosphere.

Are brass buttons and tansy the same type of plant?

The tansy plant (Tanacetum vulgare), characterized by its fern-like leaves and yellow disc flowers, resembles the brass buttons plant. This perennial herb thrives in hardiness zones 3 to 11 and can be easily differentiated from brass buttons by its height, as tansy can reach up to 4 feet, whereas brass buttons remain only a few inches tall. If you decide to incorporate tansy into your garden, be sure to deadhead the flowers post-bloom to prevent the many self-seeding volunteers from overwhelming your flowerbed.

Is it possible to purchase seeds for brass buttons plants?

Finding seeds for the brass button plant can be quite challenging. A more reliable option is to purchase a young plant from a store or to propagate it through cuttings as previously described.

What hue do brass button plants take on during the autumn and winter seasons?

In autumn, the foliage of brass buttons takes on a rich brassy bronze or purplish hue. In colder regions, the leaves will wither and retreat to the ground during winter, only to reemerge in the spring.

What is the most effective way to incorporate this plant into the landscape design?

The lush, intricately layered leaves and bright yellow flowers of brass buttons create a thick, resilient carpet on the ground. These plants are perfect for lining pathways, filling gaps between stepping stones, or serving as durable alternatives to traditional lawns that can endure foot traffic.