Hebe gibbsii (T. Kirk) Ckn. & Allan

An evergreen shrub of thin habit, 9 to 18 in. high; young shoots completely hidden by the closely packed leaves twelve to sixteen to the inch. Leaves ovate, mostly pointed, stalkless, overlapping at the base, 1⁄2 to 3⁄4 in. long, 1⁄3 to 1⁄2 in. wide, glaucous, often tinged with purplish red, of stout texture, glabrous except for the margins which are conspicuously fringed with pale hairs. Flowers white, 1⁄5 in. wide, produced during July and August in two or four clusters about 1 in. long near the end of the branches. The bracts, flower-stalks, and margins of the long and narrow calyx-lobes all furnished with white hairs.

Native of the South Island, New Zealand, up to 4,000 ft. It is a native of the Nelson Provincial District and appears to have a restricted distribution, having been found on two peaks only of the Dun Mountain Range – Mt Rintoul and Ben Nevis. If all the New Zealand hebes were as distinct as this, their study would be simple. The hairy margins of the leaves distinguish it from any other. Coming from such a lofty altitude it is quite hardy, but it is still uncommon in cultivation although one of the best of the glaucous-leaved species.