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Spergularia rubra

Red Sand Spurrey

Caryophyllaceae

Europe, North Africa, and temperate Asia

Attracts Pollinators Drought Tolerant

SunFull Sun

WaterLow · drought-tolerant

Overview

Spergularia rubra is a low, mat-forming annual or short-lived perennial 1-6 inches (2.5-15 cm) tall, with slender, much-branched, spreading stems that root where they touch the ground. Leaves are narrow and thread-like, 0.2-0.6 inch (5-15 mm) long, grey-green, in opposite pairs and small clusters, each pair joined by silvery, triangular papery stipules. From late spring through summer the plant carries many small five-petalled flowers 0.1-0.2 inch (3-5 mm) across, pink to rose-red, paler at the centre, opening in sunshine. The fruit is a small capsule splitting into three to release tiny brown seeds. It grows on dry, open, acidic and compacted sandy or gravelly ground, including paths, tracks, heaths, and roadsides, where competition is low. The plant is small and easily overlooked, and it disappears from sites that become shaded or are taken over by taller vegetation.

Native Range

Native to Europe, North Africa, and temperate Asia. Grows on dry, sandy, gravelly, and compacted acidic soils, including paths, tracks, heaths, railway ballast, and roadsides, mostly in open sun at low to moderate elevations. Widely naturalized in North America and other temperate regions on disturbed sandy ground.

Suggested Uses

Grown occasionally in gravel gardens, paths, and crevice plantings on poor acidic soils, and appears as a self-sown plant on tracks and waste ground. It fills bare gritty ground where taller plants struggle. Not suited to borders, containers, or fertile soils, where it is crowded out.

How to Identify

Recognized by its low mat of thread-like grey-green leaves with silvery papery stipules at the nodes and small pink five-petalled flowers 0.1-0.2 inch (3-5 mm) across. The petals are shorter than or about equal to the green sepals. Differs from sea spurreys (Spergularia media and Spergularia marina), which grow in salt marshes and have larger flowers and fleshier leaves.

Appearance

Size & Dimensions

Height1" - 6"

Width/Spread2" - 8"

Colors

Flower Colors

Foliage Colors

Bloom Information

Bloom Period

~18 weeks

Spring Summer Fall

Flowers from May to September, with peak bloom in summer. The small pink flowers open in sunshine and close in dull weather, and are pollinated by small insects or self-pollinate. Seed ripens through summer and autumn, and several generations can overlap in a single season.

Detailed Descriptions

Flower Description

pink to rose-red

Foliage Description

grey-green

Growing Conditions

Sun Requirements

SunFull Sun

Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily

• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight

• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight

• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight

Soil Requirements

pH Range4.5 - 6.5(Acidic)

357912

Soil Types

sand rocky

Drainagewell drained

Water & Climate

Water Needs

Low

Drought Tolerance

Drought tolerant when established

Care & Maintenance

Care Guide

Grows in full sun on dry, sharp-draining, low-nutrient sandy or gravelly soils, and tolerates compaction and foot traffic on paths and tracks. Seed germinates in spring and autumn on bare open ground, and the plant completes its cycle quickly in a single season. Tolerates drought through its short life cycle but does not compete with denser, taller plants. It needs no feeding and grows on poor ground where little else establishes. Rich, moist, or shaded soils cause it to fade out. It self-seeds readily where the ground stays open.

Pruning

No pruning is practiced on this small plant. Removing it before seed sets limits its spread on paths and gravel, though buried seed continues to germinate. Plants left in place self-seed across open ground.