Five-rib thyme is a low, creeping wild thyme native to northeast Asia, including Japan and Korea, and it doesn't grow wild in the US. It has small fragrant leaves and pale lilac to rose-pink flowers in summer, and it's occasionally grown in gardens.
Appearance
- Growth form
- A creeping, woody-based plant about 4 in (10 cm) tall that spreads along the ground by its stems.
- Leaves
- Small, aromatic, oblong to narrowly oval leaves in opposite pairs.
- Flowers
- Tiny two-lipped flowers, pale lilac to rose pink, clustered in short spikes at the stem tips.
- Flowering time
- July–August in gardens in New York
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Rocky mountain slopes
- Coastal rocks
- Dry grassland
- Range
- Native to Japan, Korea, northern China (Manchuria), Mongolia, and Siberia. Not native to the US; grown occasionally in gardens.
Growing it
- Care
- Rated hardy to USDA zone 4. Its creeping stems form a dense mat 1–2 ft (30–60 cm) wide.
Name and classification
- About the name
- Some references treat it as a subspecies of wild thyme (Thymus serpyllum subsp. quinquecostatus).
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed
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