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Sub-shrub of the Cistaceae family, selected from the species Halimium lasianthum, native to Portugal and southwestern Spain, where it grows in siliceous heaths, open scrublands, and dry garrigues at low altitudes. The 'Formosum' cultivar is the most widely spread in horticulture for the quality and size of its flowers.
It forms a dense and spreading bush, 60 cm to 1 meter in height, with evergreen gray-green foliage, covered with a whitish and velvety indumentum that gives it a soft texture and a particularly clear silvery appearance on young shoots and flower buds.
The flowers are large, with five broad and slightly crumpled petals of bright lemon yellow, marked at the base with a well-defined dark red-brown to deep purple spot, forming a contrasting dark crown at the center of each flower. This bicolored pattern, of remarkable clarity, is the most immediately striking feature of the cultivar. In its natural habitat, the species blooms from April to June; in cultivation, it generally blooms from April to May, with exceptional abundance on well-established specimens.
It requires full sun, poor, well-drained soil, preferably acidic to neutral, and a warm, sheltered exposure. Hardy to about -8 to -10°C in dry conditions, it fits happily into Mediterranean rock gardens, sunny slopes, and gravel gardens.