Pachyphragma macrophylla

At a glance

Lifecycle: Perennial (hardy)
Exposure: Full shade
Frost limit: −17.8 °C

Cultivation

Requires a leafy soil and a damp shady position. Possibly hardy to about -15°c. Plants have persistent basal rosettes.

Propagation

Seed - sow autumn in a greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer. Division in spring. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted out direct into their permanent positions. We have found that it is better to pot up the smaller divisions and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame until they are well established before planting them out in late spring or early summer. Basal cuttings in late spring. Harvest the shoots with plenty of underground stem when they are about 8 - 10cm above the ground. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer.

Edible uses

It would be worthwhile trying out the leaves of this species for edibility. They are almost certainly not poisonous[K].

Material uses

An excellent weed-smothering ground cover plant for shady areas.

Habitat

Wet beech forests to elevations of 1900 metres in Turkey

Native range

W. Asia - N.E. Turkey to W. Caucasus. Naturalized in Britain.