Spergularia rupicola Lebel
Rock Sea-spurrey
Rock sea-spurrey is a native perennial of the coast, found mainly in the west of Britain. It forms low, sprawling cushions of fleshy, narrow leaves on wiry, often reddish stems, the whole plant covered in sticky hairs.
About
Rock sea-spurrey is a native perennial of the coast, found mainly in the west of Britain. It forms low, sprawling cushions of fleshy, narrow leaves on wiry, often reddish stems, the whole plant covered in sticky hairs. Above this mat appear dainty five-petalled flowers in clear pink, the petals undivided and roughly equal in length to the green sepals behind them. It is a true cliff plant, growing in rock crevices, on ledges and bare rock faces, in short cliff-top turf and on the masonry of sea walls and piers, sometimes in spots enriched by seabirds.
Flowering from June to September, it is a tough specialist of salt-laden, exposed places, common in Cornwall and around the Welsh coast but largely absent from the east and from Scotland. It is well suited to coastal gardens, rockeries, walls and crevice plantings in full sun, where it thrives in the lean, sharply drained conditions that few other plants tolerate.
Also known as
cliff sand-spurrey · rock sand-spurrey · rock sea-spurrey
Synonyms
? rupicoloides · Alsine rupestris · Alsine rupicola · Alsine rupicola rupicoloides · Buda rupestris · Corion rupestre · Corion rupicola · Lepigonum rupestre · Lepigonum rupicola · Spergula lebeliana
Beta — under active development. This catalogue is still being built and accuracy-checked. The information here (including plant identifications, British native status, soil and sun/shade preferences) is provided in good faith for general guidance only and may contain errors or omissions. It must not be relied upon on its own — please confirm details with us before making planting, specification, foraging or purchasing decisions, and never eat or medicinally use any plant based on this catalogue alone, as some species are toxic. To the extent permitted by law, Phoenix Amenity Supplies accepts no liability for any loss arising from use of this information.