Green Lavender Cotton
Santolina virens
Fragrant, neat mound with attractive, bright green foliage. Displays showy gold flowers on stalks. Effective groundcover or edging for walks or borders. Good foreground for herb garden. Evergreen.
| Synonym: | Santolina rosmarinifolia |
| Botanical Pronunciation: | san-tow-LEEN-ah VY-renz |
| Key feature: | Fragrant |
| Plant type: | Shrub |
| Deciduous/evergreen: | Evergreen |
| Cold hardiness zones: | 8 - 9 |
| Light needs: | Full sun |
| Water Needs: | Once established, needs only occasional watering. |
| Average landscape size: | Moderate grower to 2 feet tall and wider. |
| Growth rate: | Moderate |
| Flower attribute: | Fragrant |
| Landscape uses: | Firescaping/Fire Wise, Green Roof |
| Flower color: | Yellow |
| Blooms: | Summer |
| Foliage color: | Green |
| Item no.: | 7045 |
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Care Information
Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Feed with a general purpose fertilizer before new growth begins in spring. For a formal appearance, shear annually after flowering. Pruning time: late winter or early spring.
Design Ideas
Use as a divider in the garden, as an edger along a path or in front of a shrub border. An essential of knot gardens. Drought resistance is ideal for xersicape planting in beds and borders. Add to Mediterranean style landscapes both in ground and in pots. Cute in aged terra cotta sheared into neat forms.
Companion Plants
The upright habit of Furman's Red Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii 'Furman's Red') and the taller Crimson Wonder Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos 'Crimson Wonder') are good foils to the mounding form of the lavender cotton, and their deep red blooms contrast well with the golden flowers. Morning Light Maiden Grass (Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light') adds contrast in texture while adding to bright touch to the foliage element.
History
This genus includes about eight species with only a few in cultivation. It is native to much of the Mediterranean where aromatic foliage protects from browsing wildlife. Plants became popular in medieval times as a vital component of knot gardens which provided fortified castle communities with fresh clippings for cloaking unpleasant scents and pest control.
Lore
This species and its cousin, S. chamaecyparissuswere cultivated in France as a pantry insect repellent.
Fragrant, neat mound with attractive, bright green foliage. Displays showy gold flowers on stalks. Effective groundcover or edging for walks or borders. Good foreground for herb garden. Evergreen.
Care Information
Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Feed with a general purpose fertilizer before new growth begins in spring. For a formal appearance, shear annually after flowering. Pruning time: late winter or early spring.
Design Ideas
Use as a divider in the garden, as an edger along a path or in front of a shrub border. An essential of knot gardens. Drought resistance is ideal for xersicape planting in beds and borders. Add to Mediterranean style landscapes both in ground and in pots. Cute in aged terra cotta sheared into neat forms.
Companion Plants
The upright habit of Furman's Red Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii 'Furman's Red') and the taller Crimson Wonder Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos 'Crimson Wonder') are good foils to the mounding form of the lavender cotton, and their deep red blooms contrast well with the golden flowers. Morning Light Maiden Grass (Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light') adds contrast in texture while adding to bright touch to the foliage element.
History
This genus includes about eight species with only a few in cultivation. It is native to much of the Mediterranean where aromatic foliage protects from browsing wildlife. Plants became popular in medieval times as a vital component of knot gardens which provided fortified castle communities with fresh clippings for cloaking unpleasant scents and pest control.
Lore
This species and its cousin, S. chamaecyparissuswere cultivated in France as a pantry insect repellent.
| Synonym: | Santolina rosmarinifolia |
| Botanical Pronunciation: | san-tow-LEEN-ah VY-renz |
| Key feature: | Fragrant |
| Plant type: | Shrub |
| Deciduous/evergreen: | Evergreen |
| Cold hardiness zones: | 8 - 9 |
| Light needs: | Full sun |
| Water Needs: | Once established, needs only occasional watering. |
| Average landscape size: | Moderate grower to 2 feet tall and wider. |
| Growth rate: | Moderate |
| Flower attribute: | Fragrant |
| Landscape uses: | Firescaping/Fire Wise, Green Roof |
| Flower color: | Yellow |
| Blooms: | Summer |
| Foliage color: | Green |
| Item no.: | 7045 |
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Monrovia soil products
The best fertilizer to use with this plant is Tree & Shrub Food.view soil products