''Genista canariensis'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the legume family Fabaceae, known by the common names Canary broom, Canary Islands broom or florist's genista. It is native to the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

, but it grows as an

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...

in mainland Europe, especially Spain, and on other continents. It has been introduced to California and Washington State in the US. This is a vigorous upright

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has Leaf, foliage that remains green and functional throughout the year. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which lose their foliage completely during the winter or dry season. Consisting of many diffe ...

shrub growing to tall by broad, with hairy green stems. The leaves are made up of oval-shaped blue-green leaflets each up to a centimeter long and densely hairy on the undersides. The raceme

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

holds up to 20 bright yellow pea-like flowers. The fruit is a legume pod one to two centimeters long containing several dark brown seeds. It is hardy down to , preferring mild coastal areas. In cultivation in the UK this plant has gained the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. It includes the full range of cultivated p ...

References

External links

*
Jepson Manual Treatment

Photo gallery
canariensis Endemic flora of the Canary Islands Flora of Gran Canaria Flora of Tenerife Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Faboideae-stub