With its lively charm and unique shape, the fascination behind nature’s drumsticks is easy to understand – Billy Button.
Billy buttons, a perennial herb native to New Zealand and Australia, have many names, including drumsticks, woolly heads, Billy balls, and Craspedia, all of which refer to the plant’s original appearance.
The genus belongs to the Asteraceae family and includes around 23 species[1]. Their buds are very similar among the different cultivars, but their foliage can vary from green to white.
Billy Buttons usually grows to 6 feet tall and has a woolly texture that runs through all the foliage and slender, unbranched stems. However, this plant’s most noticeable feature is the vibrant, spherical flower clusters that form at the tip of each stem.
These clusters consist of symmetrically arranged tiny florets and are about 2.5 cm in diameter. All the elements together contribute to this baguette look, hence its common name of golden drumsticks.
