Sea Thrift – Native Plant Spotlight

Sea Thrift (Armeria maritima)

Also known as the cliffrose or marsh daisy, sea thrift is an extremely widely distributed species of flowering plant found in coastal areas throughout the northern hemisphere. Ranging from western Europe, to Greenland, to North America. In the United States the plants range extends much further south on the west coast than the east, occurring from Alaska all the way to southern California. The plant occurs exclusively near the coast, from sea level to generally around 600 feet in elevation. Sea thrift is extremely salt tolerant, as well as being noted for its high resiliency in poor soils high in copper, leading to the plant doing particularly well along roadways where other species struggle to gain a foothold.

Identification tip: Sea thrift can flower year-round with tight, round flower bundles typically occurring in pink or white.

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Featured Photo Credit:
Hans Hillewaert
Arnstein Rønning