Native to the Canary Islands, a hardy subshrub, thriving well in a variety of climates including Mediterranean, desert, subtropical or temperate regions it displays large clusters of tiny flowers with intense purple calyces and white corollas on stiff branching stems above the foliage. It's particularly favored as an ornamental cut flower plant, and its flowers are often used in both fresh and dried floral arrangements. A specific cultivar, ‘Blue Seas’, is widely cultivated for such purposes, as its calyces retain their color long after the corollas have fallen.
Photographed in Bogotá, Colombia.