Description

Arenaria – Sandwort

There are about 160 species of annuals or low growing perennials that may become shrubby like, with age, in this genus.  They occur from mountainous, arctic and temperate region of the Northern Hemisphere with a few from the Southern hemisphere.  These are a somewhat evergreen plants, which bears deep green or gray-green opposite pairs of small, linear to ovate leaves.  They bear solitary or few-flowered small cluster of 5 petalled usually white flowers.  Great plant for a rock garden, alpine house, or in scree bed or for growing in crevices.

There frost hardy plants are easily grown in moist well-drained, sandy poor soil in full sun.  Divide in spring.

Prone to rust and anther smut occur.

Arenaria balearica – Corsican Sandwort – This miniature species from the western Mediterranean Islands grows to ½” tall and spreads to 12” or more wide.  It forms a prostrate mat forming evergreen which root as they spread, with almost circular shiny, light green leaves are less then ¼” long.  From late spring to summer it’s dotted profusely with star shaped white flowers with green centered to ¼-1/2” wide.  It self seeds excessively.

Zones 4-8