Santolina serratifolia

Santolina serratifolia is a very pretty botanic santolina, which forms a beautiful cushion woven from particularly dense foliage, finely cut, silver-grey and pleasantly fragrant when crushed. Unlike many others, this santolina forms upright stems and not prostrate ones, giving it a very neat habit. This evergreen and hardy Mediterranean shrub is drought-tolerant and well-suited to rocky soils, withstands pruning well, and forms a very attractive and easy-to-maintain ground cover. It thrives on dry and poor slopes, undisturbed under the sun and heat.

Santolina serratifolia is an undershrub native to Spain and southern France. This woody perennial belongs to the asteraceae family. It forms a rounded clump of 40 cm (16in) in all directions, sometimes more, depending on the growing conditions and soil type. Its woody and upright stems create a dense framework, allowing it to form beautiful, regular cushions covered with small, persistent and fragrant foliage, exuding a scent reminiscent of olive oil and turpentine. The tiny leaves are finely cut, grey-silver and arranged alternately on greyish stems. The inflorescences appear in summer, from June to August. They are small, round and bulging flower heads, resembling small golden yellow buttons. It is advisable to prune the plant after flowering to maintain a compact habit.

This beautiful undershrub for rock gardens and poor soils is perfectly adapted to drought. It particularly dislikes heavy, rich and moist soils, wet in summer. Create a bed to accompany your santolina, evoke the scrubland, by mixing the foliage and scents of rockroses, lavenders, rosemary, thymes, and salvias. Add Californian poppies, catananches, and dryland euphorbias for some dynamism in your composition. Santolinas tolerate pruning very well. It is even essential to maintain a compact habit. They can be planted along pathways, kept as low hedges, or placed in the middle of a rock garden for a silver touch. They are a very good ground cover that prevents the germination of weeds.

Properties: Santolines have vermifuge and insecticidal properties. Like lavender, they were once used to repel moths in closets.