Sideritis cypria
By Orgratis
- 20 Sep, 2009
- 1 like
Sideritis cypria has mounding silver foliage and odd 12" spikes of chartreuse calyxes with tiny yellow flowers circling inside the cup. From Cyprus, hence xeric, Zone 7
Comments on this photo
No. This has fuzzy leaves, like silene (rose campion) or the Phlomis fructicosa or Ph. aurea (one of which I'm growing in a pot, not identified). Read that the spikes can reach 30 inches. It's a new one to me, s'posed to survive to 10 F, so we'll see how it overwinters.
21 Sep, 2009
Let us know how it goes, 30" high? is it a toughie or likely to suffer in windy postions at that height, do you know what its spread is likley to be?
It sounds an interesting plant.
22 Sep, 2009
From what I've read online, it forms a low mat, maybe 8 to 10 inches (?) high and spreading 18+ inches across. The spikes have wedged triangle pyramid growing tips, which I found unusually attractive. When they open, the bees like the wee creamy yellow flowers in the collar. I will try for some better photos, altho it's pretty spent now. The spikes are like wands 12 to 18 inches high so far, very see through to plants behind, flexible in wind. Cyprus can be rocky, dry, windy; and hot & cold. So I don't know about your part of Scotland but I have dealt with severe wind high in Colorado. I piled rocks on slopes to make pockets & terraced beds (very amateur loose walls). The rocks retained heat to warm the soil so extended the "zone" of what I could grow, with sharp drainage thru the gravelly soil (amended in pockets). Be experimental! There are some Turkish varieties of sideritis too. And don't forget pussytoes Antennaria neglecta/ or parvifolia / or dioica.
22 Sep, 2009
Thanks for all this info. We are in a windy location (we don't use a 'zone' climate/growing guide in the UK), we get cold wet winters but with little snow and damp summers. Acid clay stoney soil. Azalea's and Rhododendron's are a speciality of many in the area.
You have certainly put your 'all' into your gardens. I hope to find the time to be experimental but at the moment just hope to contain what we have and to add bit by bit. Looking forward to it.
22 Sep, 2009
Is there anything besides gardening? or blogging about gardening? or reading about gardening?! Zone 8 means expected winter temps don't fall below 10 or 20 degrees F. I'll keep an ear to the ground for acid clay stone lovers, with wet feet.
23 Sep, 2009
I'm afraid there is at the moment, I work as self-employed woodworker and we have two young boys. I also have to carry on building the house and a woodworking shop so the garden is having to fit in among all that.
We can go down to 20 below freezing but its not usually lower than around 5 below freezing on the average winter.
Thanks for the 'ear to ground'.
23 Sep, 2009
To every thing this is a season and a purpose.
23 Sep, 2009
Is this a suculent?
21 Sep, 2009