How big does Alpine gypsophila grow?

About 10 cm × 40 cm after ten years (height × width). Its ultimate size is 5–20 cm × 20–50 cm.

What soil does Alpine gypsophila grow in?

It tolerates these soils: average garden soil, sandy, calcareous.

Is Alpine gypsophila hardy?

Hardy down to -34 °C (USDA zone 4, RHS H7). It gets through winter in every part of the country.

How much water does Alpine gypsophila need?

Water need: low. Drought tolerance: medium.

Alpine gypsophila

Gypsophila cerastioides

Alpine gypsophila (Gypsophila cerastioides) is a ground cover plant that reaches 10 cm × 40 cm after ten years. Light: full sun. Hardy down to -34 °C. Drought tolerance: medium.

Illustration of Alpine gypsophila — An illustration of the typical shape of the mature plant, not a photo.

What it's good for, and what it isn't

A tiny Himalayan gypsophila that makes a ground-hugging mat of rounded, fresh green leaves, topped from late spring to midsummer by white flowers finely veined with pink. It belongs in a trough, a rock garden, a wall crevice or the edge of a gravel bed, where its small size is not lost among bigger neighbours. Give it plenty of sun and gritty, free-draining soil, and a little water in long dry spells.

Watch out for

It rots quickly in standing water and in heavy soil that stays wet over winter, so always plant it in gritty, well-drained ground. Larger spreading neighbours easily smother it, and slugs may graze the young shoots.

Key facts

Light: Full sun
Water need: Low
Care: Low
Size after 10 years: 10 cm × 40 cm
Hardiness: down to -34 °C
Foliage: Semi-evergreen
Flowering: J F M A M J J A S O N D May–July, white

All details

Group	Ground cover
Light	Full sun
Size after 10 years	10 cm × 40 cm
Ultimate size	5–20 cm × 20–50 cm
Hardiness	down to -34 °C (USDA 4, RHS H7)
Soil	Average garden soil, Sandy, Calcareous
Foliage	Semi-evergreen
Flowering	May–July, white
Water need	Low
Drought tolerance	Medium
Maintenance	Low
Root aggressiveness	Low
Suckering	no data
Spreading	Low
Distance from buildings	no data
Distance from paving	no data
Litter	not typical
Planting distance	25 cm
For dogs	Non-toxic (uncertain)
For cats	Non-toxic (uncertain)
For children	no data
Typical price	no data

Toxicity data is for information only. If your pet or child has eaten a plant, contact a vet or a doctor.

Frequently asked questions

Data updated: October 17, 2026 · How our data is made

Appears in these lists

Ground cover plants Plants for containers

Guide on the topic

Ground cover plants against weeds: which goes where, and how many you need A ground cover keeps weeds out once it has closed up: until then, usually for two or three summers, it needs mulch and weeding. Under trees and in shade, lesser periwinkle, bigroot geranium, barrenwort and barren strawberry do best; in sunny, dry places stonecrops, thymes and creeping junipers. Most perennial ground covers take 9-18 plants per square metre. The tables work out what a square metre costs at today's shop prices in your country.

Building a rock garden: stone, soil and plants step by step A rock garden belongs on a sunny, gentle slope, in lean, free-draining soil: one third garden soil, one third coarse sand, one third crushed stone. Lay the stones, all of one kind, in layers leaning the same way and sunk a third to a half into the ground, so that about two fifths of the surface is stone. Four to six plants per square metre are enough: creeping junipers and grasses make the frame, and between them cushion perennials, stonecrops and thymes flower from March to October.

Looks good next to it

Sea thrift

Armeria maritima

Alpine aster

Aster alpinus

Bluebeard

Caryopteris × clandonensis