Iberis sempervirens L. var. superba

Horticultural & Botanical History

Iberis sempervirens was introduced to Britain in 1731 [PD].  ‘The commonest perennial Candytuft, half-shrubby, dwarf, spreading, evergreen, and perfectly hardy, it escapes where many plants are destroyed by cold; and in April and May its neat tufts of dark green change into masses of snowy white.  Where a very dwarf evergreen edging is required for a shrubbery, or for beds of shrubs, it is one of the best plants known, as on any soil it quickly forms spreading masses almost as low as the lawn-grass.  It should be exposed to the sun rather than shaded.  Readily increased by seeds or cuttings.  Its common garden name is I. saxitalis.  I. Garrexiana is not sufficiently distinct to be worthy of cultivation; in fact, it and several other Iberises prove, when grown side by side to be very slight varieties of I. sempervirens; it, however, seeds more abundantly, and is less spreading.  I. superba, another variety, is of good bushy habit, and bears many large dense heads of pure white flowers.’  [Robinson - The English Flower Garden and Home Grounds, 10th edition, p.616/1907].

History at Camden Park

Seed order to Hurst and McMullen, Seedsmen and Florists of London, on 8th April 1846.  [MP A2933-1, p.132]. 

Notes