Category: Plants
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Nerium oleander
Oleander is one of those plants that seems to grow in every Mediterranean garden and is also seen all along highways, roadsides, and public spaces in southern France. It is native or naturalized in many warm regions from northwest Africa and the Mediterranean to the Black Sea, the Arabian Peninsula, southern Asia and even southern…
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Verbascum
Verbascum is a family of over 400 different species of flowering plants, commonly called mullein, some of which are used in herbal medicine. Verbascum species are native to Eurasia with the Mediterranean being the home of the largest number of varieties. But despite this and despite Verbascum being well-suited for dry and chalky soils, I’ve…
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Phyla (Lippia) nodiflora var. canescens
I am officially in love and over the moon with Phyla nodiflora! I first noticed this tiny plant along one of my walking routes, greening and blooming prettily all summer long, regardless of heat and drought, along an asphalt road through the vineyards. I figured even then it must be the perfect lawn substitute and…
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Lomelosia minoana
Also called Scabiosa minoana, this native of Crete is simply a joy to grow in a Mediterranean garden. I bought this plant from Jardin sec and planted it in December 2023. It has been growing wider and heigher since, blooming profusely in soft mauve from May through July. The cream-colored seed heads stay all through…
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Spartium junceum
In June the countryside down here is full of these wonderfully bright yellow, fragrant shrubs that can grow up to 3×2 meters. Spartium junceum is a native of the Mediterranean Macchia and Garrigue in southern Europe, southwest Asia and northwest Africa. It is also found naturalized in other regions with a similar climate, like California…
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Choosing Plants for a Mediterranean Garden
The Mediterranean climate is not famous for mild summers, generous rains or generous freshwater supplies. Instead it is famous for scorching summer temperatures, heatwaves with up to 40 degrees and months on end without rain: difficult planting conditions. It only makes sense therefore to choose plants wisely instead of trying to establish old favorites from…