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Green Lavender Cotton

Santolina virens (san-toh-LEE-nah VEER-enz)

Family: Asteraceae Unknown Herbaceous (1-3 ft)

Green Santolina is a flowering, evergreen shrub in the daisy family and native to Europe. The plant has fragrant leaves, yellow flowers, and a compact, rounded, mounding habit where the mounds open and become floppy after flowering. Green Santolina does best with consistent moisture in alkaline, dry to medium, well-drained soils in full sun, but it will tolerate drought once roots are established. It prefers poor dry soils to rich or wet soils. Sandy soils that drain well are best. Deadhead spent flowers as soon as they fade. Flowers may not appear if plants are regularly trimmed/sheared. The plant can also be cut back in spring to maintain a compact shape and encourage new growth. This plant may be grown as an annual. Plants are often grown in herb and rock gardens. The foliage has historically been used as an insecticide and moth repellent. Diseases, Insect Pests, and Other Plant Problems: Humid weather tends to promote fungal diseases. Blight and root rot can occur.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 42 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft) Optimal soil pH Alkaline (>8.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Fills a similar niche Buddleja Lo & Behold® 'Blue Chip Jr.' Caryopteris Salvia rosmarinus

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Ground Cover; Shrub
Life cycle
Annual; Perennial
USDA zones
6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; Sand
Soil pH
Alkaline (>8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 1 ft. 6 in. - 2 ft. 0 in. | Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Mounding; Rounded
Texture
Fine
Foliage
Broadleaf Evergreen
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf feel
Rough
Leaf value
Fragrant
Leaf size
1-3 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Pinnately divided leaves have a rough texture and musky fragrance.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow
Flower value
Showy
Flower shape
Radial
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Button-shaped yellow flower heads blossom in summer atop stalks rising well above the foliage.
Bloom time
Summer
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Origin
Spain east to Ukraine and the Caucasas.
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Rock Wall; Walkways
Landscape theme
Drought Tolerant Garden; Rock Garden
Design feature
Border; Foundation Planting
Garden tags
#evergreen #fragrant leaves #rounded #shrub #flowering shrub #alkaline soils tolerant #rabbit resistant #groundcover #deer resistant #compact
Problems & Resistance
Resistant to
Deer; Drought; Dry Soil; Poor Soil; Rabbits

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.