Globularia gracilis

Perennial of the Plantaginaceae family, this globularia is found in the southwest of Europe, mainly on the Iberian Peninsula and in the south of France, where it colonizes dry lawns, limestone banks, rocky areas, and sunny roadsides, on poor and well-drained soils.

It forms a low and loose basal rosette, with spatulate leaves, entire or slightly notched at the top, of a medium green, from which rise slender and branched stems 15 to 30 cm tall, each bearing a solitary spherical capitulum. It is this slenderness of the stems, fine and airy, that gives it its epithet.

The capitula are composed of numerous small tubular flowers with two lips, of a pale lavender-blue to very soft lilac, whose protruding stamens give the whole a fluffy and airy appearance characteristic of the genus. In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from April to June depending on exposure and altitude.

It is cultivated in full sun, in a calcareous, light, and very well-drained soil, without excess winter humidity. A modest plant and resistant to summer drought, it is perfectly suited to rock gardens, walls, and dry gardens in a Mediterranean or garrigue style.