Saxifraga x pectinata 'Mount Maglic'

A perennial from the Saxifragaceae family, this cultivar is a natural hybrid between Saxifraga paniculata and Saxifraga crustata, collected on Mount Maglić, the highest peak in Bosnia and Herzegovina at 2,386 meters, a limestone massif of the Dinaric Alps at the borders of Bosnia and Montenegro. The two parent species belong to the Ligulatae section, a group characterized by the limestone encrustation of the foliage.

The cultivar forms large and well-defined rosettes, whose spatulate leaves, from medium green to dark green, bear a slight whitish bloom over their entire surface and are bordered by a line of regularly spaced calcareous hydathodes, forming a clear and continuous white edging. This double effect — frosted surface and white hem — reflects the combined influence of the two parents and gives the rosettes a particularly neat character. The clumps remain compact, with the rosettes multiplying slowly.

In its natural habitat, the flowering of S. × pectinata generally extends from June to July. In cultivation, panicles of white flowers rise on upright stems in early summer, in the tradition of encrusted saxifrages.

It requires a well-drained substrate, preferably limestone, in a sunny to lightly shaded exposure. Stagnant moisture at the heart of the rosettes during the winter period is its main enemy. It is suitable for cultivation in rock gardens, walls, or containers.