Ramonda serbica

Ramonda serbica is native to northern Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Albania and Bulgaria.  It is found on limestone cliffs and rocks in shady, humid canyons, gorges or ravines at elevations of 400-1500 m. It is mostly confined to NW, N or NE facing slopes. Plants form flat rosettes of evergreen, rough-textured, rounded leaves.  In April to June, flower stems arise 5-10 cm topped with a few 3 cm diameter, mauve-purple flowers. It is quite drought-tolerant with the plants shriveling significantly only to re-hydrate once exposed to water.  This imparts the common name of resurrection plant. It is hardy to zone 5.

Genus
Species
serbica
Feature image
Ramonda serbica growing in the wilds of northern Greece
Embedded Image
Close-up of Ramonda serbica flowers
Ramonda serbica in the wild, growing among moss on limestone rock.