If you kept goats in Crete or Cyprus, chances are your animals browsed on common native shrubs called cistus. These are to the Mediterranean what sagebrush is to the American West, and thus share some very important similarities. Both are so highly aromatic they have left their mark on the romance of history. That of cistus is lesser known, and yet its ancient association with goats makes it come alive for animal enthusiasts as well as gardeners.
A distinct aroma comes from the oils that are concentrated in both wood and foliage. It helps by replacing moisture lost to drought so leaves don’t shrivel and die when there’s no rain. The more droughty the plants, the more oil they concentrate during the drier times of year making them more fragrant.
All over the Mediterranean, native cistus species adapted to various regional conditions. These species have crossed naturally over millennia to create a huge range of natural hybrids in the wild. The English desire to grow cistus in their cool wet gardens was problematic with all but the most cold hardy species. Perhaps more difficult than the cold was the persistent wet, which these rugged shrubs detest. That is what makes them so ideal for the American West — all that effort in Europe to make better cistus results in a wide range of plants still untapped in our Western grower markets. These can possibly bring hardier cistus into Western states with aridity issues.
The cistus most valued for oil is Cistus ladanifer, bearing large white flowers on an open plant. But it’s the later introduction, Cistus laurifolius, that distinguished itself as being one of three sorts that survived the great frost that killed nearly all the cistuses at Kew in 1895. For mountain zones, this may prove the starting point to test the mettle of cistus in dry cold.
For gardens, there is one cistus that has dominated the market for decades. Cistus x purpureus is a hybrid of Cistus ladanifer and Cistus incanus creticus, two old world natives. The result is a big evergreen flowering shrub dubbed orchid-rockose, that produces three-inch diameter magenta pink flowers. Bold and outstanding in the dry garden, these shrubs are highly useful for slopes and sun baked locations in climates with limited rainfall. Hardy to 25 or 30 degrees Fahreniheit demonstrates how sensitive this hybrid can be to cold.
For those with goats in arid zones, these plants can be browsed by your animals just as the ancients did dating back to Genesis. Livestock experts find no toxicity. The traditional way is to allow billy goats to browse the shrubs in summer so their beard drags across the oily foliage gathering much of it into the hair. After a time the beard is cut off and the oil extracted. The value of this oil cannot be overstated as it was a costly alternative to whale ambergris used by perfume makers. Imagine how much better your billy might smell if he’s been browsing cistus all day!
For the rest of us, cistus is a first class Mediterranean garden plant where it is cold hardy. It’s often grown in concert with Artemisia, the silvery herb known as wormwood that cloaks bare legs of the taller growing cistus. Sharing the same desire for sun and drainage, bright red flowered autumn sage, Salvia greggii, adds the perfect long-term bloomer when cistus is laying low.
Save cistus for your hot spots, the west side conditions that are daunting. There its matte tone foliage absorbs light rather than reflecting for a visually cooling effect. This is the ideal foundation plant for the hot side of the house capable of covering vents and foundations.
Cistus has lost its edge in modern times but deserves a lot more attention in the American west. Not only is it floriferous, drought-resistant and aromatic, it’s an agricultural crop providing an opportunity for your goats to eat them into topiary.
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Maureen Gilmer is an author, horticulturist and landscape designer. Learn more at www.MoPlants.com
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