This is a grassland plant that survives in cultivation but prefers to be in a grassland environment that is sometimes subjected to fire, where it grows surrounded by grasses and other plants. These other plants provide shade to the root, thereby helping to maintain a cooler microclimate at soil level or just above it at 30 cm.

It will die if grown in a bare bed or in soil that is not mulched. In such a situation mealy bug can be a pest to the root and new growing shoots.

For better results there should be more diverse plants growing around this species. It is useful to observe this plant in the wild to see which other species grow near to it. Obviously each region of the country will have different species.

Parent plants form an extensive underground stem-tuber that is able to survive the regular fire that sweeps through the grassland habitat that it occupies.

This species is best grown from seed that is ripe in late summer. Once the large bladder-like follicles are ripe, they split to reveal the seeds attached to their silken-haired parachutes that are used for dispersal.

Sow the seeds in a well-drained seedling mixture after removing the silky hairs. The mixture should be made up of river sand and well-rotted compost, mixed in a ratio of 1:1.

Seeds need to be germinated in a sunny, warm position. Cool soil and air temperature cause the seeds to take longer to germinate. Seedlings take about 10 days to germinate depending on the temperature. In parts of the country, at high altitude, sowing the seeds should be held off until the following growing season. This gives seedlings the whole growing season to establish themselves before the cold and dry winters. This cultivation method can also be applied to the more commonly seen and used Xysmalobium undulatum which sometimes grows as a weed. Propagation by cuttings is worth a try.