Limonium axillareArabian Sea Lavender

The Limonium axillare, commonly known as the Arabian Sea Lavender, is a low, woody-based halophyte perennial of the Arabian Gulf and Red Sea coasts. It forms a rounded cushion of thick blue-green leaves, topped through much of the year with airy sprays of small papery mauve and white flowers.

It grows naturally on the sabkha and beach ridge immediately behind the tide line, so it takes salt spray, saline soil and reflected heat as a matter of course. Designers use it for coastal ground layer, native beach ridge restoration and low colour in saline beds.

Specifications

• Height0.3 to 0.8 metres
• Width0.5 to 1 metre
• Native toThe coasts of the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea
• FoliageThick, spoon-shaped blue-green leaves in a basal rosette on a woody base; evergreen
• Growth rateModerate

Conditions

• SoilAccepts saline, alkaline, sandy and shelly coastal soils; requires free drainage
• LightFull sun
• WaterVery low; strongly drought-tolerant and adapted to saline groundwater
• ClimateThrives in hot arid coastal regions with high humidity and salt spray

Additional Features

• FlowersAiry branched sprays of small papery mauve and white flowers, held over a long season and persisting as dried heads
• UsesCoastal ground layer, beach ridge and sabkha restoration, low colour in saline beds, native coastal character planting
• SpacingPlant 0.5 to 0.8 metres apart for a continuous low mass
• Low MaintenanceRemove spent flower stems if a tidy look is wanted; otherwise no intervention needed
• Pest ResistanceFree of significant pest and disease problems
• Salt ToleranceVery high, growing naturally within reach of salt spray on the open coast
• Drought ToleranceVery high, persisting through the dry season on coastal groundwater alone
• Seasonal AppealThe papery flower sprays hold their form long after flowering and read well in coastal planting

The Arabian Sea Lavender puts native flower colour on the most exposed saline ground in the region.