Genus:Cistus

Common Names: rockroses

A genus of around 34 species (if one includes the somewhat disputed merging with the genus Halimium) of evergreen shrubs with characteristic blooms of saucer-shaped flowers which resemble the single flower of old-fashioned or antique roses (that combined with their ability to thrive in lean, rocky soils led to the common name of rockrose). The genus is divided into clades of white-flowered species, pink-flowered species, and yellow-flowered species and also includes a fair amount of naturally occurring hybrid species. Cistus have been popular ornamentals in cultivation since the 1800s or before.

Their unique aroma, amplified on warm summer days, is exuded by a resin in their leaves called labdanum which has been used extensively in the perfume industry as well as for incense. One traditional method of harvesting the labdanum was to let goats roam through the scrub and then comb it out from their beards. Cistus creticus (formerly C. incanus) has also been used in tisanes and traditional medicine.

Distribution: the Mediterranean basin ranging in elevation from  stony scrub land (known as the maquis or garrigue) up to the higher elevation dry woodlands and open pine-forests. Several species are endemic to the Canary Islands.

Cistus 'Ann Baker'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised from open-pollinated seed by Eric Sammons in 1960 and named for an old friend. Vigorous, arching growth with dark green foliage and white flowers (6.5 cm.) in summer. Notably one of the latest-blooming cistus in cultivation. Parentage: C. 'Decumbens' × ? (likely C. laurifolius).

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus 'Bicolor Pink'

Description: evergreen shrub; a selection that originated at Western Hills Nursery in Occidental, CA. Originally thought to be a hybrid of C. parviflorus but more likely a progeny of C. 'Grayswood Pink' (which does have C. parviflorus as a parent). Low, spreading growth and dark pink flowers from spring into summer. Considered to be one of the hardier of the pink-flowered cistus. Rare in cultivation. 

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus 'Chelsea Bonnet'

Description: evergreen shrub; thought to be a hybrid of C. libanotis and C. monspeliensis raised at the Chelsea Physic Garden from a batch of C. libanotis seeds sent by Bonn Botanic Garden. Rounded growth with dense, narrow foliage and copious amounts of (3.5 cm) white flowers from late spring into summer. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus 'Christopher Gable'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Robert G. Page and named for the ballet dancer and actor Christopher Gable.Vigorous, mounding growth with narrow, dense foliage. Blooms from spring into summer. It is especially floriferous and has the smallest (3.5 cm.) flowers of any of the blotched-white flowered cistus. Attractive, bronze-red sepals give the shrub an extra layer of attraction preceding and following the bloom period. Parentage: C. 'Ruby Cluster' × C. monspeliensis.

Height: to 5 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus 'Gordon Cooper'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Robert G. Page around 1993 and named for a fellow plantsman. Vigorous and low-growing, our favorite for use as a quick-to-spread groundcover. Blotched white flowers (5 cm.) from spring into summer. Parentage: C. 'Ruby Cluster' × C. salviifolius.

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus 'Jessamy Beauty'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by the late Eric Sammons and named by Robert G. Page. Low, spreading growth with blotched white flowers (7 cm.) from spring into summer. Especially vigorous and cold hardy. Parentage: C. 'Little Gem' × C. laurifolius. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus 'Little Gem'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Eric Sammons in the 1980s from a seedling of C. 'Decumbens' that was repeatedly back-crossed with C. inflatus. Rounded growth with narrow foliage and white flowers with maroon blotches from spring into summer. Somewhat rare in cultivation but the parent of several popular hybrids. Parentage: C. 'Decumbens' × ? × C. inflatus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus 'Ruby Cluster'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Robert G. Page. Compact, rounded growth and (3.5 cm) white flowers with maroon blotches from spring into summer.  Parentage: C. 'Decumbens' × ? × C. inflatus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus 'Sarah'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised in 1980 by the late Eric Sammons. Gray-green foliage and a rounded growth habit with 1.5 in. blotched yellow flowers from spring into summer. One of the hardiest, most floriferous of the yellow-flowered rockroses.  Similar to C. 'Susan' but with smaller, darker maroon blotches on the petals. Parentage: C. lasianthus 'Formosum' × C. ocymoides. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus 'Snow Fire'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by by the late Eric Sammons around 1979 as a blotched petal equivalent of C. ×laxus 'Snow White.' The most vigorous and monstrous cistus that we've grown- to an eventual 7 ft. tall and even wider. Rounded growth and large (6.5 cm.) blotched white flowers from spring through summer. One of the showiest and longest-blooming cistus if you have the space for it. Parentage: C. ×dansereaui 'Decumbens, C. inflatus, and C. populifolius subsp. major. 

Height: to 7 ft. Spread: to 8 ft.

Cistus 'Sunset'

Description: evergreen shrub; a popular cultivar that is often found in commercial landscaping projects. Low and spreading into a compact, rounded bush. One of the latest and longest-blooming cistus in our area; striking magenta-pink flowers (5 cm.) from summer into autumn. Parentage: C. albidus × C. crispus. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus 'Victor Reiter'

Description: evergreen shrub; a selection from California named for a San Francisco plantsman. Large gray-green foliage with reddish-brown stems and rounded, upright growth. Bright pink flowers that fade to white in the center in spring and early summer. Very cold hardy. Parentage: allegedly C. laurifolius × C. creticus (or possibly C ×canescens).

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×aguilari

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid found in Spain and Morocco (though clones in cultivation are all from Spain). Vigorous, upright growth and large (8.5 cm.) white flowers from spring into summer. Very floriferous. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. populifolius.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×aguilari 'Maculatus'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Oscar Warburg from a 1920 backcross of C. ×aguilari with a blotched flower form of C. ladanifer. Vigorous, upright growth and large (8.5 cm.) white flowers with large maroon blotches from spring into summer. Very floriferous. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. ×aguilari.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×argenteus 'Blushing Peggy Sammons'

Description: evergreen shrub; found as a darker purple-pink color sport of C. 'Peggy Sammons' by Alex Pankhurst of Essex in the 1990s. Vigorous, upright growth with gray-green foliage and dark purple-pink flowers (6 cm.) from spring into summer. Obsessive tip pruning when young will promote branching, resulting in a more attractive, compact specimen. Very hardy. Parentage: C. laurifolius × C. ×canescens (triple hybrid). 

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×argenteus 'Paper Moon'

Description: evergreen shrub; a white-flower sport of C. 'Peggy Sammons' found at Jackdaws Field Nursery in England. Vigorous, upright growth with white flowers (6 cm.) from spring into summer and gray-green foliage. Obsessive tip pruning when young will promote branching result in a more attractive, compact specimen. Very hardy. Parentage: C. laurifolius × C. ×canescens (triple hybrid). 

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×argenteus 'Silver Pink'

Description: evergreen shrub; found as a chance seedling at Hillier's Nursery in 1910. Rounded growth and 6 cm. apricot-pink flowers that fade toward white in the center. Very floriferous and very hardy. Parentage: C. laurifolius × C. ×canescens (triple hybrid). 

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×bornetianus 'Jester'

Description: evergreen shrub; the last hybrid produced by the late J.E. Sammons in 1991; found as seedling in his garden by Robert Page. Vigorous, rounded growth and pink flowers from spring into summer. Parentage: C. albidus (or possibly C. ×canescens) × C. laurifolius

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×canescens 'Albus'

Description: evergreen shrub; an uncommon white-flowered form of a naturally occurring hybrid that is typically pink-flowered. Dense, rounded growth and white flowers (7 cm.) from spring into summer. Parentage: C. albidus × C. creticus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to  3 ft.

Cistus ×canescens nf. subcreticus

Description: evergreen shrub; raised as an open-pollinated seedling of C. creticus by Robert Page in 1989. Dense, rounded growth and alluring light pink flowers that fade to white in the center from spring into summer. Parentage: C. creticus × Cistus ×canescens.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×cheiranthoides syn: Halimium × pauanum

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid found in the West Mediterranean. Upright, rounded growth with dense, gray-green foliage and small, pure yellow flowers (3.5 cm) from spring into summer. Very floriferous and one of the hardiest and longest-blooming of the yellow-flowered rockroses. Considerably longer-lived in very lean soils with little to no supplemental irrigation. Parentage: C. halimifolius × C. lasianthus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×clausonii

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid found in Spain and NW Africa. Very rare in cultivation. Rounded growth with uniquely thick foliage and pink flowers from spring into summer. Parentage: C. albidus × C. heterophyllus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×curvativus

Description: evergreen shrub; rounded growth with sticky, dark green leaves and light pink flowers from spring into summer. Parentage: C. heterophyllus × C. ladanifer.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×cyprius var. albiflorus

Description: evergreen shrub; vigorous, upright growth and large white flowers (8 cm. ) from spring into summer. Foliage takes on attractive gray-green tones in winter. Very cold hardy. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. laurifolius.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×cyprius var. ellipticus 'Elma'

Description: evergreen shrub; a compact selection of C. ×cyprius bred by the English plantsman, Collingwood Ingram, sometime prior to 1960. Rounded growth and large white flowers (8 cm. ) from spring into summer. Foliage takes on attractive gray-green tones in winter. Very cold hardy. Parentage: C. ladanifer subsp. sulcatus × C. laurifolius.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×dansereaui 'Decumbens'

Description: evergreen shrub; a low, spreading form of C. × dansereaui that has been in cultivation since before 1835. Aromatic foliage and large white flowers (8 cm.) with maroon blotches in summer. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. inflatus.

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×dansereaui 'Jenkyn Place'

Description: evergreen shrub; introduced to cultivation prior to 1838 erroneously as C. lusitanicus, C. ×loretii, and C. ×florentinus. All of the clones now in cultivation were sourced from an old plant at Jenkyn Place in Hampshire, England by John Coke of Green Farm Plants who distributed the plant in the 1980s. Rounded growth and large white flowers (8 cm.) with maroon blotches from spring into summer and then sporadically into autumn. One of the longest-blooming cistus in cultivation. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. inflatus. 

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus ×dubius (costei group)

Description: evergreen shrub; upright, rounded growth with compact, dark green-gray foliage and white flowers (4 cm.) from spring into summer. Very hardy and floriferous. Parentage: C. laurifolius × C. salviifolius.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×fernandesiae 'Anne Palmer'

Description: evergreen shrub; an uncommon hybrid raised by the late Collingwood Ingram. Upright and then sprawling with wavy leaf margins and frilly pale pink flowers with darker pink centers from late spring into summer. Attractive reddish stems contrast the dark green foliage. Parentage: C. ladanifer subsp. sulcatus × C. crispus.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×florentinus 'Tramontane'

Description: evergreen shrub; a low, spreading selection of C. ×florentinus. Very compact, rounded growth and small white flowers (3.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Very floriferous. Parentage: C. monspeliensis × C. salviifolius Prostratus Group. 

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×gardianus

Description: evergreen shrub; a triple-hybrid raised by Robert Page from open-pollinated seed in 1991. Low, spreading growth with wavy leaf margins and pink flowers from spring into summer. Parentage: C. ×canescens × C. crispus.

Height: to 18 in. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×hybridus

Description: evergreen shrub; rounded growth with attractive, triangular leaves and white flowers (4.5 cm) from spring into summer. Very hardy. Parentage: C. populifolius × C. salviifolius.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×laxus 'Snow White'

Description: evergreen shrub; an especially vigorous and hardy cistus raised by Eric Sammons (c. 1956) and considered one of the best C. ×laxus hybrids for vigor, hardiness, rounded habit, and flowering. Apple-green foliage and pure white flowers (6.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Parentage: C. populifolius subsp. major × C. inflatus. 

Height: to 5 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus ×lenis 'Grayswood Pink'

Description: evergreen shrub; a chance seedling discovered by Jimmy Grant of Grayswood, England in the early 1960s. One of the hardiest of the pink-flowered cistus. Sage green leaves with vigorous, spreading growth and soft pink flowers that fade to white at the center from spring into summer. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. sintenisii

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus ×lepidocalyx 'White Satin'

Description: evergreen shrub; a chance seedling (1992) from the garden of Robert G. Page. Very narrow, glossy dark green foliage and white flowers (7 cm.) from spring into summer. Upright growth and then spreading. Resembles C. libanotis but is both larger and hardier. Parentage: C. libanotis × C. ladanifer. 

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×obtusifolius

Description: evergreen shrub; Compact, rounded growth and white flowers (5 cm.) from spring into summer. Very floriferous and hardy. Parentage: C. salviifolius × C. inflatus. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×pagei

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Robert G. Page in 1996. Compact, rounded growth with dark green, ovate leaves and pale pink flowers (4.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. laurifolius

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus ×pauranthus

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid found only in Cyprus, Crete, and the East Aegean Islands. Compact, rounded growth and pale pink flowers from spring into summer. Floriferous but requires near-perfect drainage to guarantee longevity. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. salviifolius

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×pauranthus 'Natacha'

Description: evergreen shrub; collected by Clara and Olivier Filippi near Vai Beach, Crete. A compact selection that forms a perfectly round dome of relatively small foliage. Soft pinkish white flowers from spring into summer. Requires near-perfect drainage (ideally, rocky/sandy soil) to thrive. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. salviifolius.

Height: to 30 in. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×platycepalus

Description: evergreen shrub; vigorous, arching growth and small white flowers (4 cm.) from spring into summer. Very floriferous and hardy. Occasionally sprouts from the base which is extremely useful in filling gaps left by damaged or dead branches. Parentage: C. monspeliensis × C. inflatus.

Height: to 5 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus ×porphyreus 'Purple Patch'

Description: evergreen shrub; a 2004 cross made by Robert Page. Rounded growth and pink-purple flowers (7 cm.) with maroon blotches from spring into summer. A smaller plant than C. ×purpureus with larger, neater flower blotches but likely not as cold hardy. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. ladanifer.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×purpureus

Description: evergreen shrub; a hybrid known only to cultivation but favored for its uncommon combination of large pink-purple flowers (9 cm.) with crimson blotches. Narrow, dark green foliage and dense, rounded growth with large flowers in late spring and summer. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. creticus.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×purpureus 'Alan Fradd'

Description: evergreen shrub; a white-flowered sport of Cistus ×purpureus (which has pink flowers with crimson blotches). Rounded growth with aromatic, narrow foliage white flowers (9 cm.) with crimson blotched petals from spring into summer. Parentage: C. ladanifer × C. creticus. 

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×ralletii

Description: evergreen shrub; an exciting hybrid of a Canary Island species that has been relatively hardy in temperate climates. Stiff, vigorous growth and large, bright pink flowers (7.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Very, very floriferous. Parentage: C. symphytifolius × C. creticus.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 6 ft.

Cistus ×revolii 'Merrist Wood Cream' syn: ×Halimiocistus

Description: evergreen shrub; found as a yellow-flowering branch sport of a white-flowering Cistus ×revolii at Merrist Wood College in the 1970s. Low, spreading growth with aromatic foliage and creamy yellow flowers with maroon blotches in spring. Requires near-perfect drainage to thrive in the long term. Parentage: C. lasianthus × C. salviifolius

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ×sahucii syn: ×Halimiocistus sahucii

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid first found in France. Vigorous and low-growing with very prolific blooms of small white flowers (4 cm.) from spring to summer. Perfect for rock gardens or the front of a border. Parentage: C. salviifolius × C. umbellatus.

Height: to 1 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×skanbergii

Description: evergreen shrub; a naturally occurring hybrid found in the E. Mediterranean. Narrow, green foliage that appears gray-green in summer and upright, rounded growth with small, pale pink flowers (3.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Very floriferous but requires better drainage than most cistus. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. monspeliensis.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×skanbergii f. albiflorus

Description: evergreen shrub; an uncommon white-flowered form of the naturally occurring hybrid found in the E. Mediterranean. Narrow, green foliage that appears gray-green in summer and upright, rounded growth with small, white flowers (3.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Very floriferous but requires better drainage than most cistus. Parentage: C. parviflorus × C. monspeliensis.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ×tardiflorens

Description: evergreen shrub; upright growth with unique, broad silvery foliage and bright yellow flowers with crimson spots from spring into summer. Equally beautiful outside of the flowering season. Requires near-perfect drainage to thrive. Parentage: C. halimifolius × C. atriplicifolius

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus atriplicifolius 

Description: evergreen shrub; a species found only in Spain and Morocco. Upright growth and unique, silver-gray foliage and bright yellow flowers in spring. Occasionally sets a second, less abundant flush of flowers in autumn. One of the most stunning rockroses for its foliage alone. Requires near-perfect drainage to thrive, can take foliar damage during extended temperatures below 20 F.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus calycinus

Description: evergreen shrub; rounded growth with linear, dark green leaves and yellow flowers from spring to summer. Rare in cultivation.

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 2 ft.

Cistus creticus

Description: evergreen shrub; a variable and widespread species with several disputed subspecies and botanical synonyms. Generally, low and spreading into a rounded bush with pink flowers (though white-flowered forms exist) in spring and summer. 

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus creticus 'LASCA Select'

Description: evergreen shrub; selected by plantsman, Ken Montgomery from a seedling batch started at the L.A. State and County Arboretum (LASCA). Rounded growth with pink-mauve flowers (5 cm.) from late spring through summer. Attractive reddish stems.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus creticus subsp. creticus 'Lasithi'

Description: evergreen shrub; collected from the Lasithi Plateau of Crete by Robert G. Page and selected for its "compact form with strong purple-pink flowers (5 cm.)." Possibly hardier than other common forms of C. creticus. Narrow, dark green foliage and long-blooming from late spring through summer and sporadically into fall.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus creticus subsp. creticus 'Tania Compton'

Description: evergreen shrub; a white-flowered form of C. creticus collected near Meskla, Crete by Dr. James Compton in 1991. Narrow, dark green foliage with wavy margins and white flowers (5 cm.) from late spring into summer. Requires better drainage than most cistus to perform well in our climate.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus crispus

Description: evergreen shrub; a widespread species that is generally low and spreading. Pink flowers that are darker near their centers and distinctly aromatic, wavy-edged leaves. Requires near perfect drainage in our climate to perform well. A plant for the collector.

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ladanifer 'Blanche'

Description: evergreen shrub; raised by Collingwood Ingram in the 1940s by crossing C. ladanifer subsp. sulcatus and C. ladanifer subsp ladanifer. Upright growth with very aromatic, resinous foliage and large, pure white semi-double flowers (11 cm.) from late spring into summer. Has the largest flowers of almost any cistus.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ladanifer 'Mallorca'

Description: evergreen shrub; a wild selection from Mallorca by Kevin Hughes of Spinner's Nursery in England. Uncommonly narrow leaves and large white flowers (7 cm.) with frilly petals from spring into summer. One of the smallest cistus in cultivation.

Height: to 18 in. Spread: to 2 ft.

Cistus ladanifer 'Paladin'

Description: evergreen shrub; an intermediate cross of C. ladanifer subsp. sulcatus and the type species raised by Collingwood Ingram in the 1940s. Rounded growth with dense, dark green foliage and white flowers with maroon blotches (8 cm) from spring into summer.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus ladanifer subsp. mauritianus 'Bennett's White'

Description: evergreen shrub; a selection of C. ladanifer with very large (9 cm.), frilly white flowers from spring into summer. Rounded growth and attractive cinnamon-red stems add to its allure. 

Height: to 5 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus lasianthus 'Formosum'

Description: evergreen shrub; a selection of C. lasianthus with large, purple-brown blotches at the base of each petal. Rounded growth and profuse yellow flowers (4 cm.) with basal blotches in spring. Considerably longer-lived in very lean soils with little to no supplemental irrigation.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus lasianthus 'Sandling'

Description: evergreen shrub; a vigorous selection of C. lasianthus with light crimson blotches on the petals.. Upright and rounded growth with bright, crimson-blotched yellow flowers (4 cm.) in spring. Considerably longer-lived in very lean soils with little to no supplemental irrigation.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus lasianthus subsp. alyssoides 'Farrall' 

Description: evergreen shrub; a vigorous selection of C. lasianthus with rich, egg-yolk yellow flowers. Upright, rounded growth with narrow, green foliage and profuse yellow flowers in spring. Considerably longer-lived in very lean soils with little to no supplemental irrigation.

Height: to 3 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus laurifolius

Description: evergreen shrub; a widespread species and considered to be the hardiest cistus species with some populations found as high as 2000 m. elevation in Europe. Vigorous growth, dark green foliage and attractive cinnamon-red bark that peels in old age. Pure white flowers (5.5 cm.) in late spring and summer.

Height: to 5 ft. Spread: to 5 ft.

Cistus libanotis 'Major'

Description: evergreen shrub; a selection of C. libanotis noted for being larger in all parts than the species. Narrow, dark green foliage and reddish buds that open to white flowers (5.5 cm.) from spring into summer.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus monspeliensis

Description: evergreen shrub; a variable, widespread species . Upright and then sprawling growth and dense, green foliage with small white flowers (3.5 cm) from spring into summer. Generally very floriferous.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus monspeliensis 'Vicar's Mead'

Description: evergreen shrub; a unique selection of C. monspeliensis with pale yellow flowers collected from Majorca by Harold Read. Narrow, green leaves and a dense, rounded growth habit with small, pale yellow flowers (4.5 cm.) from spring into summer.

Height: to 4 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus ocymoides

Description: evergreen shrub; a species native to Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. Low, rounded growth with narrow, gray-green foliage and profuse blooms of yellow flowers with dark maroon blotches at the base of each petal in late spring. Considerably longer-lived in very lean soils with little to no supplemental irrigation.

Height: to 2 ft. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus populifolius subsp. major

Description: evergreen shrub; a subspecies defined by large, wavy-edged leaves. Vigorous upright growth with large, poplar-like leaves and white flowers (6.5 cm.) from spring into summer. Generally quite hardy.

Height: to 6 ft. Spread: to 4 ft.

Cistus salviifolius 'Bonifacio'

Description: evergreen shrub; collected by Olivier Filippi at Cape Pertusato, near Bonifacio, Corsica and selected for its very low stature and spreading habit. Small, round leaves and white flowers (5 cm.) from spring into summer.

Height: to 8 in. Spread: to 3 ft.

Cistus salviifolius Prostratus Group

Description: evergreen shrub; a widespread and variable species, though most forms in cultivation are in the low-growing Prostratus Group. Small, textured leaves with small white flowers (5 cm.) from spring into summer. One of the best Cistus for use as a groundcover.

Height: to 10 in. Spread: to 4 ft.