''Iberis gibraltarica'', the Gibraltar candytuft, is a flowering plant of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

Iberis ''Iberis'' , commonly called candytuft, is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Brassicaceae. It comprises annuals, evergreen perennials and subshrubs native to the Old World. The name "candytuft" is not related to candy, but der ...

'' and the family

Brassicaceae Brassicaceae () or (the older) Cruciferae () is a medium-sized and economically important family of flowering plants commonly known as the mustards, the crucifers, or the cabbage family. Most are herbaceous plants, while some are shrubs. The leav ...

. It is the symbol of the Upper Rock Nature Reserve in

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, but is a native of

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

is the only place in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

where it is found growing in the wild. The candytuft grows from crevices in the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, and is often seen growing in abundance from the north face of the Rock of Gibraltar. Its flowers range from pale violet to almost white, and can reach up to across.Wild flowers of Gibraltar from the Gibraltar Magazine
/ref> This species of candytuft is the national flower of

, where it appeared on the local 50 pence coin between 1988 and 1989.

Gallery

File:Gibraltar Candytuft 2.JPG File:Iberis gibraltarica.JPG

References

Flora of Gibraltar gibraltarica Flora of Africa Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Brassicales-stub