Asarina procumbens 'Forma compacta' IRG - Owl and Stump Rare ...

Christine Grey-Wilson did an absolutely lovely drawing of Asarina procumbens on p.40
in her husband's "A Manual of Alpine Plants" (1989, Helm/Timber Press). It looks for all
the world like the forma compacta and his description matches it to a T. (MAGGI: Any
way of getting permission from her to use it?) However, it was twenty years later in
2009's "The Rock Garden Plant Primer" (Timber Press), that Chris Grey-Wilson
becomes the first author to give mention of the plant under discussion- the forma
compacta (although Grey-Wilson refers to it on p. 62 of the latter publication as 'nana'. )
I am going to assume that 'nana' and 'compact form' are one and the same. Anecdotal
evidence of this interchangeability of terms in this specific case is provided by the
eminent Canadian alpine nurseryman, Harvey Wrightman http://
www.wrightmanalpines.com/plant/asarina-procumbens-compacta. Mr. Wrightman had
previously used the term 'nana' but now calls it compact form. I believe that it is more
botanically correct to refer to it as 'compact form'.
But what of its origins?
There really is not a lot of hard evidence as to what is the source of the 'compact form'.
The RHS Plantfinder 2011-12 shows plants last listed in 2003. None were listed before
or since accoring to my research. If anyone knows more on this please weigh in on the
Forum. Thus, it would seem that it is a recent arrival on the horticultural scene. Grey-
Wilson's inclusion would seem to support this idea. The Alpine Garden Society seedex
listed the compact form in 2004/2005 as lot # 1556. I do not have access to previous
years seed lists so that's as far as I can go. Similarly, it seems that last year was the first
time it had been listed on the SRGC seedex. Lucky me!
According to many Spanish, ecologically-partial websites (academic), A. procumbens
loves subalpine, moist climates growing primarily in rock ledges that are largely
siliceous in minerals i.e. schist, granite, gneiss. It can grow at elevations up to 2400m in
the eastern Pyrenees Mtns. With this kind of range both across the Pyrenees and at
fairly high altitudes, it seems possible that someone may have found a 'compact form' in
their travels through the mountains and quietly put it into horticultual 'play'. It has also
been a horticultural feature in many French Pyrenean villages for hundreds of years.
Possibly a sport emerged there as well. It is all speculation at this point.
Nomenclature
The most commonly used recent synonym is Antirrhinum asarina. Previous to this it has
been called Antirrhinum procumbens and Maurandya asarina with earlier authors calling
it Antirrhinum saxatile (Bauhin), Asarina mathioli (Mathioli), and Hedera saxatilis
(L'Obel).