Old Fashioned Candytuft for Early Spring Flowers

Candytuft has been flowering in my garden since the second week of January. While the clusters of white flowers are on the small side, it is always nice to see signs of life when everything else is dormant or dead. Candytuft, Iberis sempervirens (pronounced eye-BEER-is sem-per-VY-renz) is used as a groundcover. Early in the year, the flowers can be sparse but as temperatures rise the blooms are so profuse that they almost conceal the dark green evergreen to semi-evergreen foliage.

Candytuft was widespread in gardens when I was a child, but it has fallen out of favor. I don’t understand why. This plant has a cast-iron constitution. Plants were not pampered at my childhood home. They did not receive fertilizer, soil amendments, or supplemental water. Instead, they went directly into unamended clay. And, for the most part, they thrived. Our foundation beds were edged with Candytuft. It put on a spring show, and then retired into obscurity the rest of the year, allowing attention to focus on the taller shrubs and foundation plantings.

Candytuft has a sprawling habit. Everywhere its stems fall onto soil, it will take root and slowly expand into a pretty edger. Leaves are leathery, narrow, and only an inch long. Flower clusters are about the size of a quarter coin. Candytuft prefers full sun and a neutral to slightly alkaline soil, although those in my childhood home were never limed and they did fine. Plant roots will rot in wet soils. They are hardy in zones 3-8, although they are only semi-evergreen in the colder zones.

Mature plants tend to open up a bit as stems elongate and spread horizontally. Trim with scissors or handheld pruners every 2-3 years to encourage branching and bushy new growth. A light trim when flowering is complete may result in repeat flowering. Plants can be used as a “spiller” in containers, or allowed to drape gracefully over the top of a wall.  Candytuft is rarely damaged by insects or disease. I would like to tell you that they are resistant to damage from deer or rabbits, but my neighbors tell me that their plants have been damaged occasionally, although not ravaged.

I have only seen two cultivars in garden centers: ‘Alexander White’ and ‘Purity.’ The smallest cultivars are ‘Whiteout’ (2-3 inches tall and 5 inches wide), ‘Little Gem’ and “Snowcushion.’

Candytuft is also available in an annual form, Iberis umbellata. It is easy to start from seed, and comes in shades of pink, lavender, purple, red, and white.

Three years ago, this was a 4-inch pot of Candytuft. I allowed stems to root into the surrounding mulch. It is now 30 inches across.

A close view of Candytuft flower

Clivia Houseplant: Winter Flowers

The trumpet-shaped blooms of Clivia offer a welcome bright spot during gray mid-winter. Clivia miniata (pronounced KLIV-ee-ah min-ee-AY-tah) is cold hardy only in zones 9 and warmer, which means most gardeners enjoy it as a houseplant.

Clivia flowers may be orange or yellow (less common, more expensive). My first plant came as a gift from fellow Master Gardener, Dr. Jim Weeks. He assured me that it would survive low light levels, being root bound, occasional drought, and general neglect. Check, check and check. I placed it in a north-facing window, and have been rewarded with orange flowers every year since. Plants produce single stems topped with clusters of up to twenty buds. These open over days or weeks. My record has been blooms over 23 days. Not bad for a victim of my houseplant skills! The flowers result in seeds, but the most reliable means of propagation is separation and re-potting of the offsets produced by a mature plant. It may take a year or two for these offsets to bloom. Plants bloom best when moderately root bound.

Treat plants to a lukewarm shower occasionally to remove dust from the broad strap-like leaves that resemble Amaryllis, to which it is akin. Otherwise, avoid overwatering. Allow plants to dry out slightly between waterings, and never allow them to stand in water. Oldest leaves may yellow. This is normal. Trim these off with scissors. Give plants a rest period of 4-6 weeks with reduced water and night temperatures of 50 degrees to induce bud set. Use a water-soluble houseplant fertilizer at half-strength every two weeks once buds are visible. Plants prefer bright, filtered light but no direct sun. A north-facing window is ideal.

All parts of Clivia are toxic to pets and people.

A flowering Clivia miniata. Note that this specimen is in a nursery pot within a decorative cache pot. I remove the black plastic pot before giving the plant a thorough soaking, and allow it to drain before returning it to the ceramic container.

This specimen is happy in a north-facing window, where it receives bright light but no direct sun.

There is root bound, and then there is Criminal Plant Neglect. This falls into the latter category.. She got a root trim and fresh soil.