Sageleaf Rock Rose

Sageleaf Rock Rose (Cistus salviifolius) is a spreading Mediterranean shrub that stays around 60cm tall and covers about a metre of ground, which makes it one of the most useful groundcovers for a hot, dry, exposed bank. Soft sage green leaves cover it all year, and through spring it carries white flowers with a yellow blotch at each petal base. It handles frost, salt wind, drought and poor soil, so it goes where irrigation does not.

Why you'll love it

• It covers ground without irrigation. One plant spreads to about a metre, so a dry slope can be planted out and then largely left alone.
• Four hard tolerances in one plant. Frost hardy, drought tolerant, salt tolerant and comfortable in poor soil.
• Flowers that feed bees. Clean white blooms with a yellow centre open in flushes through spring, and bees and butterflies work them all day.
• Grey green foliage year round. The felted sage coloured leaves hold the planting together long after flowering finishes.

Where it works best

Groundcover and slopes. Plant 80cm apart for a spreading groundcover. At that spacing plants knit into continuous cover in two seasons and the shaded soil suppresses weeds.

Coastal gardens. Salt tolerance and low stature suit exposed frontages where taller shrubs get burnt back by wind. Pair it with coastal rosemary or seaside daisy.

Rockeries and borders. In a rockery it spills over stone naturally. Along a bed edge it holds a soft mounded line and hides the bare base of taller shrubs.

Growing sageleaf rock rose in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun. It suits warm temperate, cool temperate, Mediterranean and arid or semi-arid gardens, so most of southern Australia, the inland and the temperate coast are within range. Frost is not a problem. A humid summer wet season is, so gardeners in the tropics and wetter subtropics should choose a groundcover suited to those conditions.

Soil. Sharp drainage matters far more than fertility. Sand, gravel and rocky ground are ideal, and poor soil is genuinely fine. On clay, mound the bed up 200mm to 300mm and work coarse sand through it.

Water and feed. Water deeply once a week through the first summer, then step back. Established plants live on rainfall in most temperate gardens, and heavy feeding shortens their life.

Pruning. Tip prune lightly after flowering to keep the habit dense. Never cut into bare old wood, because rock roses do not reliably reshoot from it. Plan on replacing plants after eight to ten years.

What to expect when it arrives

Sageleaf rock rose is grown here as tube stock, so it arrives as a small rooted plant rather than a spreading bush. That is the right way to buy it for groundcover work: tubes cost less across the numbers you need, and young rock roses establish far more readily than older pot bound plants. Expect roughly half the mature spread by the end of the first year and full cover in the second.

Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Plant into moist ground and keep the water up for the first eight to twelve weeks while roots move out. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Choosing the right groundcover for your site
• Browse the full groundcover range
• Compare coastal and salt tolerant plants
• See what else suits a rockery

Common questions

How many plants do I need per square metre?

At 80cm spacing you need roughly one and a half plants per square metre, so a 10 square metre bank takes about 16 plants. Tighter spacing closes the gap sooner but costs more without improving the result.

Why do the flowers only last a day?

That is normal for rock roses. Each bloom opens in the morning and drops by evening, and the plant produces another wave through the flowering period.

Can I walk on it?

No. It is a covering groundcover rather than a lawn substitute, and stems break rather than bend underfoot. Use steppers through the planting if you need access.