It grows best in full sun along the coast and partial shade in warmer locations with little to moderate water once established in a well-draining soil. An excellent choice for a coastal planting as it is both salt and wind tolerant though not tolerant of heavy clay or wet soils. Cold hardy to about 20-25° F although tip damage has been noted around 24° F in a central California nursery. A beautiful plant for the garden and great for cut foliage.

Coast Woolybush is native to King George Sound on the southern coast of Western Australia, where it grows within splashing distance to the ocean. The name Adenanthos comes from the Greek 'aden' meaning "a gland" and 'anthos' meaning "a flower" and is in reference to the flowers' prominent nectaries. The specific epithet is the Latin word meaning "silky" in reference to this plants very soft foliage.

We had sold this plant since 1998 and previously listed it as Adenanthos sericea, but changed our listing to Adenanthos sericeus in 2005 on the advice of Dr. Charles Nelson, author of the section on Adenanthos (Proteaceae) in the Flora of Australia (16: 314-342). In the past we also grew a selection of this plant we called Adenanthos sericeus 'Sherwood Mist') that had a bit more of a compact growth form and slightly greener leaves. 

The information about Adenanthos sericeus that is displayed on this web page is based on research conducted in our nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We will also include observations made about this plant as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens that we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We also incorporate comments that we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they share cultural information that aids others growing this plant.