Carlina acanthifolia

Perennial of the Asteraceae family, Carlina acanthifolia is found in the mountains of southern Europe, from the Pyrenees to the Balkans, including the Alps and the Apennines. It occupies rocky grasslands, dry pastures, and sunny screes, on calcareous substrates, between approximately 800 and 2,000 meters of altitude.

Its habit is absolutely unique: the plant is practically stemless, developing a rosette spread flat on the ground, 30 to 60 cm wide, with deeply cut, spiny leaves of a grayish-green, reminiscent of a thistle. In its center sits a single large capitulum, which can exceed 10 cm in diameter, surrounded by long, straw to silvery-white radiating bracts that give it the appearance of a star placed directly on the earth.

These bracts, very sensitive to humidity, close in overcast weather and open in the sun, a behavior that once served as a popular weather indicator in the alpine and Pyrenean regions.

In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from July to September.

In cultivation, it requires a very well-drained soil, poor to moderately rich, preferably calcareous, in full sun. It dreads stagnant winter moisture, which is fatal to it. Ideal in rock gardens or gravel gardens, it displays the full graphic power of its radiating rosette.