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Rock rose (Cistus)
Also known as : Shrubby rock-rose
They are perennial shrubs. The leaves are evergreen, opposite, simple, usually slightly rough-surfaced. They have showy 5-petaled flowers ranging from white to purple and dark pink. Rock rose is containing about 20 species. Rock rose are found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean region. 
Lifespan
Perennial
Key Facts About Rock rose
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Attributes of Rock rose
Plant Height
80 cm
Spread
1.5 m
Leaf type
Evergreen
Scientific Classification of Rock rose
Distribution of Rock rose
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Distribution Map of Rock rose
Native
Cultivated
Invasive
Potentially invasive
Exotic
No species reported
How to Grow and Care for Rock rose
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The rock rose genus is composed of evergreen shrubs renowned for their prolific flowering and their ability to thrive in poor, well-drained soils. Basic care for rock rose includes abundant sunlight, moderate watering, and protection from frost, with preference for warm climates. Common challenges often involve root rot from overwatering, and they may occasionally be targeted by pests such as whiteflies. Seasonal considerations entail reducing watering in winter and ensuring adequate hydration during hot summers, with little need for seasonal pruning or fertilization adjustments.
Exploring the Rock rose Plants
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8 most common species：
Grey-leaved cistus
Grey-leaved cistus (Cistus albidus) is a woody, evergreen shrub that will grow to 91 cm tall and 91 cm wide. Foliage is soft and velvety with grayish-white leaves that are covered with fine hairs. Clusters of purplish-pink, crinkled flowers bloom in spring. Flowers have yellow centers with dozens of orange stamens to attract bees and other pollinating insects.
Sage-leaved rock-rose
Sage-leaved rock-rose (Cistus salviifolius) is an evergreen shrub with white flowers that are vibrantly yellow at their center. It earns its common name and scientific specific epithet from the fact that the leaves are wrinkled and resemble sage leaves. It is a common wildflower in the Mediterranian, southern Europe, West Asia, and parts of North Africa.
Gum rockrose
Gum rockrose (Cistus ladanifer) is a flowering shrub native to the western Mediterranean. It exudes a sticky, fragrant resin that has been used to create perfumes. The distinct flowers are a brilliant papery white, with a maroon spot at the base of each petal, and a bright yellow center.
Pink rock-rose
Pink rock-rose (Cistus creticus) is a dense evergreen perennial shrub native to Greece. The plant's blooms are commonly pink, greatly reminiscent of a wild rose, although the two plants are not related. Its hybrid version is a common garden plant.
Montpelier cistus
Montpelier cistus is very popular with insects, bees, and other pollinators. The evergreen plant is grown as an ornamental in gardens, and it’s also used as an ingredient for commercial cosmetics. Generally, the flowers are short-lived and only last for a day, but will bloom in succession for the next few days.
Wrinkle-leaved rockrose
You're most likely to identify wrinkle-leaved rockrose (Cistus crispus) in the wild by its pretty pink flowers with yellow centers. Look for it in dry scrubs and meadows during the summer months. Despite these pretty flowers that attract bees, this plant isn't commonly grown ornamentally.
Laurel-leaved cistus
Laurel-leaved cistus is appreciated for its striking flowers of tissue-paper-like petals and a rich, yolk-like center. It is an evergreen shrub that is perfect for cottage gardens and ground cover. You can find it growing naturally on banks and slopes.
Poplar-leaved cistus
Poplar-leaved cistus is an ornamental that is attractive to bees and is fairly drought tolerant. An evergreen shrub, poplar-leaved cistus usually repetitively blooms in the late spring/early summer with each blooming flower only lasting for one day.
All Species of Rock rose
Grey-leaved cistus
Grey-leaved cistus
Grey-leaved cistus (Cistus albidus) is a woody, evergreen shrub that will grow to 91 cm tall and 91 cm wide. Foliage is soft and velvety with grayish-white leaves that are covered with fine hairs. Clusters of purplish-pink, crinkled flowers bloom in spring. Flowers have yellow centers with dozens of orange stamens to attract bees and other pollinating insects.
Sage-leaved rock-rose
Sage-leaved rock-rose
Sage-leaved rock-rose (Cistus salviifolius) is an evergreen shrub with white flowers that are vibrantly yellow at their center. It earns its common name and scientific specific epithet from the fact that the leaves are wrinkled and resemble sage leaves. It is a common wildflower in the Mediterranian, southern Europe, West Asia, and parts of North Africa.
Gum rockrose
Gum rockrose
Gum rockrose (Cistus ladanifer) is a flowering shrub native to the western Mediterranean. It exudes a sticky, fragrant resin that has been used to create perfumes. The distinct flowers are a brilliant papery white, with a maroon spot at the base of each petal, and a bright yellow center.
Pink rock-rose
Pink rock-rose
Pink rock-rose (Cistus creticus) is a dense evergreen perennial shrub native to Greece. The plant's blooms are commonly pink, greatly reminiscent of a wild rose, although the two plants are not related. Its hybrid version is a common garden plant.
Montpelier cistus
Montpelier cistus
Montpelier cistus is very popular with insects, bees, and other pollinators. The evergreen plant is grown as an ornamental in gardens, and it’s also used as an ingredient for commercial cosmetics. Generally, the flowers are short-lived and only last for a day, but will bloom in succession for the next few days.
Wrinkle-leaved rockrose
Wrinkle-leaved rockrose
You're most likely to identify wrinkle-leaved rockrose (Cistus crispus) in the wild by its pretty pink flowers with yellow centers. Look for it in dry scrubs and meadows during the summer months. Despite these pretty flowers that attract bees, this plant isn't commonly grown ornamentally.
Laurel-leaved cistus
Laurel-leaved cistus
Laurel-leaved cistus is appreciated for its striking flowers of tissue-paper-like petals and a rich, yolk-like center. It is an evergreen shrub that is perfect for cottage gardens and ground cover. You can find it growing naturally on banks and slopes.
Poplar-leaved cistus
Poplar-leaved cistus
Poplar-leaved cistus is an ornamental that is attractive to bees and is fairly drought tolerant. An evergreen shrub, poplar-leaved cistus usually repetitively blooms in the late spring/early summer with each blooming flower only lasting for one day.
Hairy rockrose
Hairy rockrose
Hairy rockrose is a sun-loving perennial shrub named for its numerous fine hairs and its ability to successfully grow on rocks. This showy plant is often used in rockeries and within wall spaces, attracting bees and butterflies. Hairy rockrose is drought tolerant and resistant to animals such as deer, rabbits, and slugs.
Rock rose 'Gold Prize'
Rock rose 'Gold Prize'
Rock rose 'Gold Prize' is a true prize, with its gorgeous golden foliage. While its parent has some gold in its variegated foliage, the foliage of rock rose 'Gold Prize' is almost completely bright gold, with very little green. It is a cultivar of White Rock Rose (Cistus × hybridus), which is a hybrid of the Cistus genus. The name refers to the ostentatious golden foliage.
Rock rose 'Thrive'
Rock rose 'Thrive'
A compact, dense variety, rock rose 'Thrive' grows only to 60 centimeters tall and will only spread to a width of about 1 meter over the course of five years. Its flowers are white with a bright yellow center, resembling the coloring of a fried egg. The plant's foliage consists of narrow, dark green leaves.
Purple-Flowered Rock Rose
Purple-Flowered Rock Rose
Purple-Flowered Rock Rose is an award-winning cultivar often found in cottage and rock gardens. It is more tolerant of cold temperatures than most other plants in the genus. It is also easily identified by its profusion of bright-colored blossoms that also give the plant the occasional common name, ‘Purple-flowered rock rose.’
Orchid rockrose
Orchid rockrose
Orchid rockrose is known for being drought-resistant and grows wild and in gardens of its native Southern Europe. This species was originally cultivated as a hybrid cross between the pink rock rose and the glum rock rose.
Rock rose 'Alan Fradd'
Rock rose 'Alan Fradd'
Rock rose 'Alan Fradd' is a rock rose that has a most distinctive flower color, with white petals with a maroon brush mark where the base meets the bright yellow eye. This hybrid is more hardy than most rock roses and can be identified by its unique flowers.
Sage-leaved rock-rose 'Prostratus'
Sage-leaved rock-rose 'Prostratus'
Prostratus means 'prone' or 'lying down' and sage-leaved rock-rose 'Prostratus' merits this name because this is a low-growing shrub with a maximum height of just 60 cm. This is an unusually heavy-flowering plant that is perfect for garden ground cover, especially over uneven terrain.
Rock rose 'Sunset'
Rock rose 'Sunset'
Sunset is an apt name for this Rock rose since it has flowers that are a unique and striking sunset shade of magenta-red. Rock rose 'Sunset' grows well in many garden settings including beds and borders, groundcover, and cottage gardens, so gardeners particularly like it for its versatility.
Rock rose 'Peggy Sammons'
Rock rose 'Peggy Sammons'
Rock rose 'Peggy Sammons' is a striking evergreen shrub known for its silvery-green foliage and profusion of large, papery pink flowers that bloom in late spring to summer. Its low-maintenance and drought-resistant nature, coupled with a preference for full sun, allows it to thrive in warm, dry climates, gracing gardens with bright ornamentation and attracting pollinators like bees.
Rock rose 'Maculatus'
Rock rose 'Maculatus'
Rock rose 'Maculatus' is one of the showiest rock rose cultivars available. It is a white-flowered cultivar with maroon spots on the base of the petals. Though all cultivars of this species have these spots, rock rose 'Maculatus' is specifically named for them; "maculatus" is Latin for "spotted."
Hairy rockrose
Hairy rockrose
Hairy rockrose is a hardy, evergreen shrub known for its resilience in the rocky Mediterranean terrain. It dons a mantle of pink to purplish flowers, notable for their crinkled petal texture, resembling delicate crepe paper. Silver-green, hairy leaves help hairy rockrose conserve moisture, adapting well to warm, dry climates. The woolly flower buds and distinct leaf aroma are characteristic identifiers of this aromatic and ornamental sub-species.
More Popular Genus
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Dracaena
Dracaena are popular house plants that are easy to grow. They can tolerate low-light conditions and require little watering. Their leaves range from variegated to dark green. Their characteristic traits include woody stems that grow slowly but offer a striking appearance for small spaces such as apartments or offices.
Fig trees
Fig trees have been cultivated in many regions for their fruits, particularly the common fig, F. carica. Most of the species have edible fruits, although the common fig is the only one of commercial value. Fig trees are also important food sources for wildlife in the tropics, including monkeys, bats, and insects.
Brambles
Brambles are members of the rose family, and there are hundreds of different types to be found throughout the European countryside. They have been culturally significant for centuries; Christian folklore stories hold that when the devil was thrown from heaven, he landed on a bramble bush. Their vigorous growth habit can tangle into native plants and take over.
Maples
The popular tree family known as maples change the color of their leaves in the fall. Many cultural traditions encourage people to watch the colors change, such as momijigari in Japan. Maples popular options for bonsai art. Alternately, their sap is used to create maple syrup.
Prunus
Prunus is a genus of flowering fruit trees that includes almonds, cherries, plums, peaches, nectarines, and apricots. These are often known as "stone fruits" because their pits are large seeds or "stones." When prunus trees are damaged, they exhibit "gummosis," a condition in which the tree's gum (similar to sap) is secreted to the bark to help heal external wounds.
Nightshades
Nightshades is a large and diverse genus of plants, with more than 1500 different types worldwide. This genus incorporates both important staple food crops like tomato, potato, and eggplant, but also dangerous poisonous plants from the nightshade family. The name was coined by Pliny the Elder almost two thousand years ago.
Roses
Most species of roses are shrubs or climbing plants that have showy flowers and sharp thorns. They are commonly cultivated for cut flowers or as ornamental plants in gardens due to their attractive appearance, pleasant fragrance, and cultural significance in many countries. The rose hips (fruits) can also be used in jams and teas.
Oaks
Oaks are among the world's longest-lived trees, sometimes growing for over 1,000 years! The oldest known oak tree is in the southern United States and is over 1,500 years old. Oaks produce an exceedingly popular type of wood which is used to make different products, from furniture and flooring to wine barrels and even cosmetic creams.
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About
Key Facts
Distribution
How To Care
All Species
More Genus
Rock rose
Cistus
Also known as: Shrubby rock-rose
They are perennial shrubs. The leaves are evergreen, opposite, simple, usually slightly rough-surfaced. They have showy 5-petaled flowers ranging from white to purple and dark pink. Rock rose is containing about 20 species. Rock rose are found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean region.
Lifespan
Perennial
Key Facts About Rock rose
Feedback
Attributes of Rock rose
Plant Height
80 cm
Spread
1.5 m
Leaf type
Evergreen
Scientific Classification of Rock rose
Distribution of Rock rose
Feedback
Distribution Map of Rock rose
Native
Cultivated
Invasive
Potentially invasive
Exotic
No species reported
How to Grow and Care for Rock rose
Feedback
The rock rose genus is composed of evergreen shrubs renowned for their prolific flowering and their ability to thrive in poor, well-drained soils. Basic care for rock rose includes abundant sunlight, moderate watering, and protection from frost, with preference for warm climates. Common challenges often involve root rot from overwatering, and they may occasionally be targeted by pests such as whiteflies. Seasonal considerations entail reducing watering in winter and ensuring adequate hydration during hot summers, with little need for seasonal pruning or fertilization adjustments.
Exploring the Rock rose Plants
Feedback
8 most common species：
Grey-leaved cistus
Grey-leaved cistus (Cistus albidus) is a woody, evergreen shrub that will grow to 91 cm tall and 91 cm wide. Foliage is soft and velvety with grayish-white leaves that are covered with fine hairs. Clusters of purplish-pink, crinkled flowers bloom in spring. Flowers have yellow centers with dozens of orange stamens to attract bees and other pollinating insects.
Sage-leaved rock-rose
Sage-leaved rock-rose (Cistus salviifolius) is an evergreen shrub with white flowers that are vibrantly yellow at their center. It earns its common name and scientific specific epithet from the fact that the leaves are wrinkled and resemble sage leaves. It is a common wildflower in the Mediterranian, southern Europe, West Asia, and parts of North Africa.
Gum rockrose
Gum rockrose (Cistus ladanifer) is a flowering shrub native to the western Mediterranean. It exudes a sticky, fragrant resin that has been used to create perfumes. The distinct flowers are a brilliant papery white, with a maroon spot at the base of each petal, and a bright yellow center.
Pink rock-rose
Pink rock-rose (Cistus creticus) is a dense evergreen perennial shrub native to Greece. The plant's blooms are commonly pink, greatly reminiscent of a wild rose, although the two plants are not related. Its hybrid version is a common garden plant.
Show More Species
All Species of Rock rose
Grey-leaved cistus
Sage-leaved rock-rose
Gum rockrose
Pink rock-rose
Montpelier cistus
Wrinkle-leaved rockrose
Laurel-leaved cistus
Poplar-leaved cistus
Hairy rockrose
Rock rose 'Gold Prize'
Rock rose 'Thrive'
Purple-Flowered Rock Rose
Orchid rockrose
Rock rose 'Alan Fradd'
Sage-leaved rock-rose 'Prostratus'
Rock rose 'Sunset'
Rock rose 'Peggy Sammons'
Rock rose 'Maculatus'
Hairy rockrose
More Popular Genus
Feedback
Dracaena
Dracaena are popular house plants that are easy to grow. They can tolerate low-light conditions and require little watering. Their leaves range from variegated to dark green. Their characteristic traits include woody stems that grow slowly but offer a striking appearance for small spaces such as apartments or offices.
Fig trees
Fig trees have been cultivated in many regions for their fruits, particularly the common fig, F. carica. Most of the species have edible fruits, although the common fig is the only one of commercial value. Fig trees are also important food sources for wildlife in the tropics, including monkeys, bats, and insects.
Brambles
Brambles are members of the rose family, and there are hundreds of different types to be found throughout the European countryside. They have been culturally significant for centuries; Christian folklore stories hold that when the devil was thrown from heaven, he landed on a bramble bush. Their vigorous growth habit can tangle into native plants and take over.
Maples
The popular tree family known as maples change the color of their leaves in the fall. Many cultural traditions encourage people to watch the colors change, such as momijigari in Japan. Maples popular options for bonsai art. Alternately, their sap is used to create maple syrup.
Prunus
Prunus is a genus of flowering fruit trees that includes almonds, cherries, plums, peaches, nectarines, and apricots. These are often known as "stone fruits" because their pits are large seeds or "stones." When prunus trees are damaged, they exhibit "gummosis," a condition in which the tree's gum (similar to sap) is secreted to the bark to help heal external wounds.
Nightshades
Nightshades is a large and diverse genus of plants, with more than 1500 different types worldwide. This genus incorporates both important staple food crops like tomato, potato, and eggplant, but also dangerous poisonous plants from the nightshade family. The name was coined by Pliny the Elder almost two thousand years ago.
Roses
Most species of roses are shrubs or climbing plants that have showy flowers and sharp thorns. They are commonly cultivated for cut flowers or as ornamental plants in gardens due to their attractive appearance, pleasant fragrance, and cultural significance in many countries. The rose hips (fruits) can also be used in jams and teas.
Oaks
Oaks are among the world's longest-lived trees, sometimes growing for over 1,000 years! The oldest known oak tree is in the southern United States and is over 1,500 years old. Oaks produce an exceedingly popular type of wood which is used to make different products, from furniture and flooring to wine barrels and even cosmetic creams.
Your Ultimate Guide to Plants
Identify grow and nurture the better way!
17,000 local species +400,000 global species studied
Nearly 5 years of research
80+ scholars in botany and gardening
Continue reading in our app - it's better
A database of 400000+ plants
unlimited guides at your fingertips...
unlimited guides at your fingertips...
