I recently scanned some old slides, and this is one of them. The color is all wrong, and somehow over-exposed, but it does convey the size and majesty of Androsace lanuginosa when it is at its full glory. For over a decade back in the 1980's and early 1990's a small hillside in the Rock Alpine Garden at Denver Botanic Gardens was draped with this outrageous carpet of bloom. It's more or less in full sun. The soil was a deep, rich scree: for whatever reason, this plant loved it and spread and bloomed pretty much steadily from May to Autumn frost. Eventually, it used up whatever nutrients, or something changed and it died back bit by bit. I think we still have a few pieces growing here and there, but nothing so lavish and rich.
I have tried getting it to repeat the trick at my home garden--and have some puny clumps (by comparison). There is some major nursery: Monrovia or Hines, that was selling gallon pots brimming with dozens of stems--so someone can grow it well even in pots!
For me one of the great pleasures of rock gardening is finding a spot where a gorgeous alpine does its thing especially well--for a good long time. Now to do it again!