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Teucrium fruticans 'Azureum' (Bush Germander) – Though smaller than the species, this cultivar still grows as a silver mound up to 4-5 feet tall and 5 feet wide but is often kept lower. It has leaves that are gray green above and silver white beneath, which gives the whole plant a silvery appearance. Deep blue flowers bloom at branch tips in the summer-fall. It grows tighter in a sunny location but can be grown in light shade and is good in many soil types, so long as it has decent drainage and given only occasional irrigation. It is hardy to around 10 degrees F. This is a great plant for the informal mediterranean planting or sheared in a formal garden where it attracts bees and is resistant to deer predation.
Teucrium fruticans hails from dry sunny locations in western Europe from Portugal across southern Europe to the islands in the Adriatic Sea. The name for the genus has several possible derivations but most likely it is from the Greek name Teucer, a king of Troy, who is said to have used the plant medicinally. The specific epithet is the Latin word for "shrubby". This shrub was the winner of the prestigious Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit in 1993 and we have grown it continually since 1989.
This information about Teucrium fruticans 'Azureum' displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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