Recommended for your garden in southern Spain: Scaevola aemula

Scaevola aemula, commonly called the fan flower, is native to hot, dry, desert areas of Australia. It blooms continuously from late spring until the cooler temperatures of autumn arrive.

Both drought and heat resistant (once established) this low growing, trailing or spreading plant is not fussy about soil type as long as it is free draining. It also does not mind salt winds and can therefore be grown in coastal locations.

A member of the Goodeniaceae family, the fan flower has light-green oval leaves with toothed edges and the fan-like flowers form in spirals around the stem. The blooms attract bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects and can be in shades of pink, blue, purple and white, all with a bright-yellow and white throat.

The plant will flower over a long period if given a liquid fertiliser every three to four weeks and no dead-heading is required as the finished blooms drop off themselves. If the stems start to look a little straggly they can be pinched back to promote bushy growth.

Scaevola is a great plant for the Mediterranean climate as it needs between 6 and 8 hours of sunlight a day to flower. It can be grown in containers, where it will trail over the edge, hanging baskets, as edging for borders or as ground cover. It can also be used as a cut flower. It is not really suitable for xeriscaping as some watering is necessary to keep it healthy. If it becomes limp, a deep watering will soon revive it.

It is not cold hardy and will need to be moved into a sheltered position in winter or otherwise treated as an annual.

Propagation is by rooting stem cuttings. The best results are achieved using rooting hormone. It can be grown from the tiny seeds it produces but many are often not viable and germination can take up to six months.