Description and General Information:
Androsace sarmentosa is mostly known in cultivation by its subspecies primuloides. In some literature it is called Androsace primuloides. A synonym name sometimes encountered is A. studiosorum. This species hails from Nepal,Tibet and Pakistan, where is grows in open woodlands and rocky slopes at an elevation of 2700-4000 m. Plants form a loose mat of evergreen rosettes, 1-3 cm in diameter, with somewhat spoon-shaped leaves that are covered in white hairs. The overwintering rosettes are especially silvery in appearance. Each rosette produces an umbel of 0.7-0.9 cm diameter, purple-pink, yellow-eyed flowers atop 4-10 cm stems. In the wild, it blooms from June to August. After blooming, the rosettes develop one to several red stolons which terminate in another rosette.
Blooming Season:
In cultivation, it blooms in April in the south to June in the north.
Cultivation:
This is among the easiest Androsace to grow in cultivation. It requires reasonably organic soil but does demand excellent drainage in winter, otherwise the rosettes may rot. Morning sun is fine in the north but in warmer areas, light shade is best. It is not fussy about the soil pH. It is hardy in zones 3-8.
Propagation:
As this species naturally reproduces by stolons, propagation is quite simple.
