Very low maintenance, Cistus Purpureus ground cover shrubs will look wonderful in a rockery. You could also try this rounded, sun-loving, evergreen rock rose towards the front of a sheltered, sunny, well-drained border, or in a container. Try planting with Lavender, Santolina, Artemesia Powys Castle or with grasses and Yucca. They are irresistible with their dry, woody, resinous fragrance, making you think of summer holidays in the Mediterranean. They will also keep bees and other pollinators happy with the daily supply of new flowers!
Happiest in full sun, Cistus Purpureus prefers free-draining soil and will perform well in poor, stony ground. Avoid planting in heavy, wet or overly fertile soils or where they sit in frost pockets or strong winds, as these can damage these shallow-rooted plants
As a rough guide when planting Cistus Purpureus as ground cover – 4 plants per square metre is adequate with a little patience, 6 will give better coverage, and 9-12 will make a weed supressing carpet very quickly.
How to grow Cistus Purpureus
Position: Sunny and sheltered
Foliage: Evergreen, leaves persist all year
Soil and site: Dry, stony or chalky, free-draining
Flowering time: Mid-Summer
Growth rate: Moderate
Ultimate height and spread: To 100cm, with a spread similar to their ultimate height
Hardiness: Fully hardy
Water well until established, avoiding soil becoming waterlogged. Minimal maintenance is required after they are well established and rooted beyond the removal of any dead branches. We recommend you pinch back young plants after flowering to encourage a bushy habit. Lightly trim or cut back any stems that spoil the symmetry of the plant.
We are now taking orders for January delivery.
Delivery is free for most orders above our free delivery thresholds, these are displayed above our prices in the product listings and summarized below. If you don’t need that many plants it’s not a problem, you can choose to pay our delivery charge and only order what you need.
Delivery is convenient – no signature is required so you don’t need to wait in, we will leave your parcel in the safe place that you nominate.
Delivery is fast – because we pick orders daily from our own growing beds your plants only travel the small hop to our packing shed before being sent to you, they are usually delivered within 3-7 days.
Delivery is reliable – we have been selling and delivering Hedging Plants to our customers nationwide since 1992. We have a lot of experience in packing them safely and only use tried and tested delivery partners.
Smaller Plants (Parcel Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Up to £90 | £15.00 |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £90 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | £24.00 |
Heavy Plants (Pallet Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Up to £420 | £72.00 |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £420 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | £72.00 |
Tall Plants 2.5m+ (Specialist Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Under £1800 | Please call us |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £1800 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | Not available |
Exceptions to our delivery charges are Scottish Highland and Isle of Wight delivery areas where we need to charge a little extra to cover the cost of deliveries to these outlying areas. We don’t currently delivery to other offshore addresses including Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland.
Tall plants over 2.5 metres have to be delivered by our own specialised transport, our delivery area is limited to mainland England and Wales only.
Please note there is a minimum order value of £50 for orders containing smaller plants and £250 for orders containing heavier plants
Complete delivery information can be viewed on our Delivery Information page
