By Laura Lukes, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, August 24, 2018

Sideritis. It sounds like a medical condition, but it is actually the name of a plant genus known for its medicinal properties. And it is one of the latest additions to the UC Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden at the Patrick Ranch (10381 Midway, just south of Chico).

This spring (2018), Master Gardener David Walther, an expert on unique and fascinating plants and owner of Spring Fever Nursery, added a Dry Garden to our Demonstration Garden with the help of a hard-working team of fellow Master Gardeners. This new garden is located between the Heritage Almond orchard and the roundabout in front of the Patrick Ranch Museum Gift Shop. The Dry Garden features plants that, once established, need NO supplemental water during our hot, dry summers. Yes, you read that right.

Ideally, Walther and his crew would have planted the varieties showcased in the Dry Garden in mid- to late-October 2017. Fall and winter rains alone would establish the plants and no further supplemental irrigation would be required. But due to the delayed planting schedule, the Dry Garden is receiving some supplemental water this season. Once the rains come (usually just after Halloween), the array of plants in the Dry Garden will be left to their own devices to survive our valley summers.

Plant selection is the key to a successful dry garden. Many Mediterranean and native California species evolved specific strategies to weather the long, hot, dry summers that characterize this special climate niche. Some of these species are actually averse to summer irrigation, and will not survive without well-drained soils. (Watch this space for a future article on the qualities that make a plant “drought tolerant.”)

Walther chose about twenty species of plants for their beauty and their hardiness (see sidebar for a complete list). Among the usual Mediterranean suspects such as Santolina, several species of Phlomis, and Teucrium chamaedrys, there's a new kid in town: Sideritis cypria.

Sideritis is a little toughie that exhibits a number of desirable qualities. It is strikingly beautiful; wind and deer resistant; evergreen (with interesting foliage year-round and contrasting flower spikes in summer); can take full sun and heat; and prefers to be dry all through the summer.

The particular Sideritis species Walther chose for this Dry Garden is Sideritis cypria, whose common name is Cyprus ironwort or Cyprus woundwort. The literal translation of Sideritis from the original Greek is “he who is made of iron.” As its species name indicates, Cyprus ironwort is endemic to the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus; specifically, it grows on rocky cliffs and outcrops along the slopes of the Pentadaktylos Range in the Kyrenia Mountains, which run along the northern coast of the island. (More fun with words: Pentadaktylos translates as “five fingers” – the shape which the range is said to resemble.)

The suffix “wort” comes from a Middle English word (wyrt) for root, and nowadays indicates a plant that has been historically used for food or medicinal purposes. According to Oliveology, an online resource devoted to “sharing and enjoying the culinary treasures and gastronomic traditions of Greece,” Sideritis was well known to ancient Greeks, particularly to the pharmacologist/ botanist Dioscurides, the philosopher Theophrastus, and to Hippocrates. A number of sources note that in ancient Greece it was commonly used to treat wounds, especially those inflicted with iron swords or arrows.

A few moments on the internet reveal that a wide range of medicinal and health properties are assigned to the genus, including as a remedy for colds, aches, allergies, indigestion, and respiratory issues. There are claims that it can boost the immune system. Some studies suggest that not only does Sideritis prevent and treat Alzheimer's disease but it also can forestall osteoporosis.

In 2011, the Journal of Ethnopharmacology published findings that Sideritis species were shown to have anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antispasmodic properties. A 2012 publication of the Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology noted that extracts made from Sideritis helped lower blood pressure levels while helping blood vessels to relax. You may have heard of Sideritis in one of its common medicinal forms: Greek Mountain Tea, Shephard's Tea, or just plain old Mountain Tea.

Miraculous medicinal claims aside, the Cyprus ironwort is a spectacular-looking plant. When not flowering, it is a mound of soft furry gray green leaves that grows to about one foot tall and wide, and looks very similar to lamb's ear (Stachys). It blooms, in the summer, by putting out contrasting chartreuse flower stems which rise another 12-18 inches above the leaves, and carry cuplike yellow flowers. Unfortunately, this hardy beauty is listed as “vulnerable” in its native habitat under the International Union for Conservation of Nature, due to development, wildfires, mining, and other environmental stressors.

You can find Cyprus ironwort and many of the plants featured in the Dry Garden at local nurseries which specialize in California and Mediterranean natives. These plants epitomize the premise upon which the Master Gardener Demonstration Garden is based: The New California Garden: Beautiful; Sustainable; Functional. And no additional water required!

Note: For more information about the Master Gardener Program and the Demonstration Garden, please visit http://ucanr.edu/sites/bcmg/ . Garden questions can be directed to the Hotline at 530-538-7201.

 

Plants in the Dry Garden at the Master Gardeners Demonstration Garden at Patrick Ranch

Genus	Species	Common Name
Artemesia	schmidtiana	Silvermound, wormwort
Helianthus	maximilianii	Maximilian sunflower
Helichrysum		Strawberries and cream
Iris	douglasiana	Douglas iris
Melianthus	major	Honey bush
Muhlenbergia	rigens	Deer grass
Phlomis	fruticosa	Jerusalem sage
Phlomis	russeliana	Jerusalem sage
Phlomis	purpurea	Purple phlomis
Phlomis	samia	Greek Jerusalem sage
Romneya	coulteri	Coulter's Matalija Poppy, California tree poppy
Salvia	canariensis	Canary Island sage
Salvia	spathacea	Hummingbird sage, pitcher sage
Santolina	chamaecyparissus	Lavender cotton
Santolina	pinnata	Rosemary leaved lavender cotton
Scutellaria	suffretescens	Mexican skullcap, pink Texas skullcap
Stipa	gigantea	Giant feather grass
Teucrium	chamaedrys	Wall germander
Teucrium	fruticans	Bush germander
Trichostema	lanatum	Wooly blue curls