The gray, feathery foliage of Jacobaea maritima.

A wild clump of Jacobaea maritima in flower, backed by the Mediterranean Sea.

	'mouse-over' for meanings

Jacobaea maritima   (L.) Pelser & Meijden 2005

Asteraceae

dusty miller, cineraria ragwort, silver groundsel, silver ragwort • Català (Catalan): cinerària, donzell de mar • Español: cenicera marítima, cenicienta, cenizo, cineraria • Française: séneçon cinéraire • Italiano: senecione cinerario • Ελληνική (Greek): σινεράρια, σενέκιο

עברית (Hebrew): סביון מלבין

native to the western and central Mediterranean region, especially seaside cliffs and islands; naturalised in various plants including the British Isles

Synonymy: Cineraria bicolor Willd. 1803; C. maritima L. 1763; C. maritima subsp. maritima; Othonna maritima L. (basionym) 1753; Senecio bicolor (Willd.) Tod. 1859; S. b. subsp. cineraria (DC.) Chater 1974; S. cineraria DC. 1838; S. cineraria subsp. bicolor (Willd.) Arcang. 1894

Perhaps one of the most common foliage plants you'll see these days, offered by growers around the world and used in a variety of climates as an 'annual' bedding plant, whose gray foliage makes such an interesting foil for flowering plants. The latin cineraria translates as "ash-colored", referring to this tomentose foliage. In mediterranean climates, this is best considered a short-lived, shrubby perennial. If you are keen to keep the foliar effect as long as possible, it is best to remove flower stems as they form - these can often spoil the look of leaves and make the plant floppy and untidy. When grown dry and more natural, the form is more compact and the aging flowers are possibly in keeping with your theme.

A dizzying array of cultivars exist and 'new' forms are always being introduced by growers and seed houses. Most are fairly similar though you might find one does better for you in your particular area. Finely dissected, narrow, feathery lobes seem to be what breeders feel is most desireable: 'New Look', 'Silver Lace', 'Silverdust', 'Snowstorm', 'White Diamond'.

To mee the popular interest in using this plant for container arrangements, dwarf forms seem to be a trend - 'Alice' (1ft?), 'Silver Dust' (10in?), 'Silver Queen' (8in?) - though there is a lot of conflicting data about cultivar size, perhaps because of the variety of climates and conditions (e.g. pot culture) in which this common plant is grown. Because this species tends to be perennial in mediterranean climates (in colder climates it is grown as an "annual"), the ultimate height will likely be more than advertised. Growers may also offer one or more cultivars under erroneous names. Because of the ease in which this species is propagated, a desirable plant may be obtained or maintained in this manner. Personally, I enjoy a plant of unknown origin obtained from a local garden - its large leaves are held in an interesting manner quite unlike the standard offerings in the nursery trade (more 3-dimensional, not not at all flat).

The interesting cultivar usually called 'Cirrus' has leaves that are mostly entire, with large rounded tips and occasional lobing closer to the petiole. This plant can be (or seems) larger in proportion to other cultivars - the white of its leaves is certainly very striking because of the solid surface.