What is an Alpine

What is an Alpine Plant?

Alpine plants are a wide range of small and hardy plants that are naturally adapted to grow in an alpine climate, at high elevations, typically above the tree line. For gardeners, alpine is a broad term that extends to a wider range of plants that are often grown in containers and rock gardens.

There are stricter definitions, from an ecological perspective, which specifies that alpine plants are “highly specialised plants of high altitudes (or latitudes) which normally hibernate under snow, high up on mountain peaks or in Arctic and Antarctic regions”. Meaning, literally, ‘alpine’ refers to plants of alpine regions.

At the Alpine Garden Society, we consider a wide range of definitions of alpine to be correct, and we include all plants under these broad definitions as part of our discussions and events. Like our members’ range of interests, we understand that the range of interpretation of what is, and is not, an alpine plant is broad and personal.

Alpine Plants in More Detail

Alpine plants normally hibernate under snow, and this is a detail often used to define them: bringing together plants which grow at sea-level within the Arctic Circle, 2000m in the European Alps, and 4000m in the Himalayas. In all of these environments, alpines will have a long winter resting period under snow. This is a time of relative dormancy in which they are largely protected from extremes of temperature and humidity, and from pests and diseases.

During the growing season, alpine plants are exposed to strong winds, low night temperatures, dehydration from sun and wind, and a relative scarcity of insect pollinators. So, these factors lead to common characteristics of structure and growth, including:

• Being low in stature and compact to minimise wind-damage.
• Having deep roots for strong anchorage and to reach moisture in the recesses of rock or scree.
• Having foliage which is adapted to minimise water-loss by small surface area, hairiness, or thick-skinned succulence.
• Having flowers that are large for the size of the plant, and frequently scented, to attract scarce insect pollinators.
• Making rapid growth through flower to fruit because of their short growing windows.

All of these characteristics make many alpines difficult to grow and flower in the average garden. They need screes, crevice gardens, raised beds, pots or troughs to better replicate their natural environment.

Common Types of Alpine Plant

One of the most famous alpine plants is Edelweiss, which is used as a national symbol for Austria and was made famous by the film ‘The Sound of Music’. However, there are a range of other more common alpine plants that you will have seen in many gardens in the UK and beyond. Here we have listed a very few of them.

Rock cress, or Aubrieta, is one of the most classic and widely grown alpine plants. It has dense, spreading mats of foliage that become completely smothered in small, four-petalled flowers in shades of purple, pink, and blue in spring. It is very low maintenance and you will have seen it spilling over walls, rocks, or out of containers, in many gardens.

Houseleek, or Sempervivum is very recognisable and is a feature in many shops and cafes because of its low maintenance (or drought tolerance). It has rosette-forming succulent leaves which come in a vast array of colours, sizes, and textures from bright greens to deep burgundies and silvers.

Alpine Pinks, or Dianthus, are popular because of their hardiness and beauty. They produce many small fragrant and fringed flowers in shades of pink, white, and red, usually with attractive grey-green foliage.

Rockfoil, or Saxifraga includes a wide variety of species. Often these plants are mossy saxifrages and form dense, bright green cushions of foliage that become covered in dainty white, pink, or red flowers in spring.