Native plant of the month: GEORGIA ROCKCRESS

Arabis georgiana

The Georgia Rockcress is a threatened perennial found in very few locations along rocky slopes in Georgia’s Chattahoochee, Clay, Floyd, Gordon, Harris and Muscogee counties.  Its delicate, erect stems hold flowers with four white petals. The Georgia Rockcress is unique because it grows in thin, rocky soils that discourage many other native plants, but it is not a strong competitor. Aggressive exotic plants, such as Japanese Honeysuckle and Chinese Privet, are invading the habitat and competing for sun and nutrients. The plant is also suffering because clearing and quarrying of rocky bluffs, hardwood slopes, and riverbanks destroys its habitat.

 

 

The State Botanical Garden of Georgia Mimsie Lanier Center for Native Plant Studies is working with this plant and has reintroduced it into new Georgia sites to preserve and grow the population. Find out more about what is happening at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia to Preserve Georgia’s Imperiled Native Species and how you can help.