Aubrieta Purple Cascade - Rock Cress

Aubrieta or Rock Cress is an easy to grow, spring flowering perennial. 'Purple Cascade' produces rich purple carpets of flowers over semi-evergreen, greyish-green foliage. Although fairly short-lived, it blooms profusely from March to May-June. Perfect for growing between flagstones, over low retaining walls or alongside taller plants in large pots and containers. Rock cress enjoys cool, well-drained soil and plenty of sun.

Aubrieta or Rock Cress belongs to the Brassicaceae family. Most of the hybrid cultivars are selected from Aubrieta deltoidea, a species which is native to south-eastern Europe and Turkey. 'Purple Cascade' is a rhizomatous plant with a compact, mat-forming habit, producing 15 cm high cushions which rapidly spread out to over 60 cm in diameter. Their oval, silvery-green leaves are semi-evergreen to evergreen depending on the climate. They end in a point and have coarsely toothed margins. In spring, from late March to late May, they are buried under masses of small, four-petalled flowers in varying shades of purple. Aubrieta is a very cold-hardy plant that can withstand temperatures as low as -20°C.

With its uniform, mat-forming habit, Rock Cress is ideal for borders and edging. It is not very fussy when it comes to soil types, providing it is not too dry. It is suitable for rock gardens or for growing over low retaining walls, where it forms very attractive drifts of colour. It will soon colonise sunny slopes, gaps between paving stones or dry-stone walls and is equally suited to growing in pots or hanging baskets.