How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Santolina Chamaecyparissus

Santolina chamaecyparissus, also known as lavender cotton or gray santolina, is a beautiful drought-tolerant evergreen shrub with silvery gray and green foliage. It belongs to the family Asteraceae and blooms with button-like flowers in the summer.

A great candidate for borders, beds, a rock garden, knot gardens, and as a xeriscaping plant, lavender cotton adds a subtle but silvery gray-green color to a green space and grows as tall as two feet. The oils in the silver foliage deters rabbits and deer too.

So, let’s talk about lavender cotton and give you everything you need to add it to your garden among your ground cypress and other plants in an informed manner.

What is Santolina chamaecyparissus?

Santolina chamaecyparissus – also known as lavender cotton, gray santolina, and other names – is a fragrant, dwarf green shrub. Grown for its foliage, it loves dry soil. Much like other herbs, Santolina chamaecyparissus appreciates repeated trimming and harvesting, which makes it great for topiaries.

Native Area

Native to Italy and Yugoslavia and common in the western and central Mediterranean regions of Spain and Morocco, lavender cotton is a fast-growing, low-maintenance, drought-tolerant flowering plant that blooms in May-June.

Characteristics

It has dissected, narrow leaves in silvery-woolly color with long-stalked, bright yellow flower heads that are one inch in width in summer. The silver foliage has a herby scent that’s been likened to oregano.

It typically grows one to two feet tall and wide, forming a dense, rounded mound. Santolina chamaecyparissus is valued for its pest-repelling properties and is often included in herb gardens for its practical and ornamental appeal.

Plant Santolina chamaecyparissus among ground cypress plants for contrasting bluish greens and yellows.

Varieties

Gray santolina has a few popular varieties that are native to southern Europe and Northern Africa. ‘Weston’ is a dwarf shrub that doesn’t grow above one foot. It has a unique silver foliage with a strong, pungent fragrance.

‘Edward Bowles’ is another variety with creamy-yellow flowers and gray-green leaves.

‘Lemon Queen’ has pale yellow blooms and rich green leaves and grows up to two feet.

‘Morning Mist’ is 15 inches tall and bears yellow blooms with grayish-waxy leaves that add winter interest to a garden. It’s the only variety that can tolerate wet soils.

Planting

To plant Santolina chamaecyparissus, select a sunny location with well-drained soil, as this Mediterranean shrub thrives in dry, sandy, or rocky conditions. Begin by loosening the soil and amending it with sand or gravel to improve drainage.

Dig a hole slightly larger than the plant’s root ball, ensuring the crown is at soil level to prevent rot. Place the plant in the hole, backfill with soil, and firm it gently around the base. Water deeply after planting to help establish the roots, but avoid overwatering, as this plant prefers dry conditions.

Space multiple plants about 18–24 inches apart to accommodate their mature spread. Mulch lightly around the base to suppress weeds, but keep mulch away from the stem to prevent rot. Prune lightly after flowering to maintain shape and encourage dense growth.

Once established, Santolina chamaecyparissus requires minimal care, making it an excellent choice for low-maintenance gardens.

How to Grow

Lavender cotton is drought tolerant and thrives well in poor, dry soils. Here’s everything you need to know about its care and maintenance.

Light

Drought-tolerant Santolina chamaecyparissus grows well in full sun and can grow well in USDA hardiness zones 6-9. It can also grow in up to four hours of full shade if there isn’t a full-sun area to plant it in. This could encourage a floppier growth habit, though.

Water

Since it is drought-tolerant, gray santolina needs minimal water and doesn’t like excessive moisture. When the shrubs are young, simply give an inch of water every week to help strengthen the root system. Once established, watering is only required twice a month. Use soaker hoses or drip irrigation to water deeply and slowly in the morning. The plant also needs dry spaces rather than humid ones.

Soil

Gray santolina plants like well-drained, gritty soils, preferably dry to medium. Wet soil should be avoided at all costs as it can easily lead to root rot. They prefer alkaline soil so don’t add too much acidic compost. The ideal soil pH for this shrub is 7, and good drainage is essential. Poor soils are fine as long as they are well-draining. Rock gardens are ideal.

Temperature

When it comes to temperature ranges, lavender cotton can handle cold down to 0°F (-18°C). It will take on damage with temperatures consistently at or below this, and a frost cloth could assist in a snap freeze. Heat, on the other hand, is no problem at all.

Fertilizer

Lavender cotton doesn’t need fertilizer. If nutrition in the soil needs some refreshment, a light dressing of compost in early spring is enough. Do not feed Santolina chamaecyparissus as it is used to living in nutrient-deficient, sandy soil.

Maintenance

The yellow flowers are excellent as house plants and ground cover for your gardens. Smaller lavender can grow well in containers and pots. Prepare a pot (larger than the root ball) with potting mix. Untangle the root ball, gently separate the roots, and place the plants six inches inches apart.

Give plenty of bottom heat to help the gray santolina roots establish themselves in their new home. Keep it in a well-lit spot and water once a week until it puts on new growth.

Snip off the dead wood and deadhead the yellow flowers in spring just as the growing season begins. Prune the plants into a nice, circular shape after the flowers have bloomed. This will prevent the plants from collapsing or becoming woody. In winter, every three to four years, prune your entire shrub back to six inches above the soil. This will promote adequate growth.

Propagation

Propagate in spring using semi-ripe stem cuttings or seeds. If gray santolina gets too large, take the flopping stems and mound layer them. Take a pruning knife and cut a 45° angle, cutting most of the way through a branch. Bury it in the soil close to the plant, where it can form roots. Once the roots form, separate the new plant from near its parent when the season ends and plant it elsewhere in your garden.

You can also propagate lavender cotton via stem cuttings. Take a three-inch cutting in spring or summer and remove all but the top couple of rows of silver foliage. Then, dip the tip in rooting hormone and place it in a potting mix of potting soil with some added peat. Keep it out of direct sunlight. Water it in, and in two to three months, you should see new growth.

Common Problems

While lavender cotton is pretty hardy, it does have a few issues that can crop up. Let’s talk about them now.

Growing Problems

Overwatering can be a major problem for lavender cotton. Excess moisture can cause the roots to develop destructive diseases. If you’re growing them in your garden, water them twice a month. Similarly, don’t fertilize your plant with more than a light layer of compost once per year.

Pests

Lavender ground cover is virtually pest-free. The oils in its aromatic foliage not only keep away rabbits and deer, but insects also don’t appreciate it either.

Diseases

Poorly drained soils can lead to basal crown rot and fungal root rot, which can be prevented by reducing watering. If you don’t have success with withholding water, you can try to replant the shrub in fresh, dry potting media. If that doesn’t change the situation, remove the entire plant and dispose of it in the trash.

Frequently Asked Questions