Ozothamnus coralloides

Ozothamnus coralloides — Dwarf shrub of the Asteraceae family, endemic to New Zealand, where it is found in the Southern Alps of the South Island. It grows in rocky screes, windy ridges, and highly exposed alpine slopes, generally between 1,200 and 2,000 meters, on well-drained substrates.

It forms very compact, upright clumps, 10 to 20 cm in height, with rigid, upright, unbranched or slightly branched stems, with a coral-like appearance — which its epithet precisely translates. It is one of the most unique alpine plants: its stems are entirely covered with small, appressed, scale-like leaves, dark green and shiny on their outer surface, bordered with a dense white felt, arranged in regular rows that irresistibly evoke a branch of coral or reptile skin.

The flowers are small, creamy white capitula, discreet, appearing at the ends of stems. In its natural habitat, flowering extends from December to February, which corresponds to the austral summer.

In cultivation under our latitudes, it is primarily the architectural foliage that attracts attention, with flowering remaining secondary. It requires extreme drainage, poor mineral soil, a sunny exposure, and dreads stagnant winter moisture. Pot cultivation in a cold shelter is often recommended for regions with rainy winters.