English: Purple saxifrage; Purple mountain saxifrage.
Inuit: aupilaktunnguat.
Region: high Arctic, Island, Greenland; high mountainous areas of northern Britain, the Alps and the Rocky Mountains.
Habitat: cold temperate, Arctic, to 83°N, the most northerly plant in the world; from sea level up to 1000 m; where the snow melts later; fellside snow-bed sites, stream banks, wet rock surfaces, Lappish rock faces, rocky places, gravels, fell heaths; needs calciferous soils, covered with white lime deposits.
Culture: territorial flower of Nunavut in Canada; symbolic flower of Nordland county in Norway; county flower of County Londonderry in Northern Ireland.
Use: ornamental, alpine gardens; flower petals are eaten, bitter at first but, after about one second, they become sweet, slightly sticky; leaves and stems for herbal tea.

BotanyHerb; perennial; low-growing, densely or loosely matted plant; up to 5 cm high; creeping or trailing habit; tufted, sometimes a cushion plant–mat-forming; forms stands.
Root: taproot; strong.
Stem: woody, limp–ascending; somewhat woody branches.
Leaves: small; rounded; scale-like; opposite in four rows with ciliated margins;stalkless; overwintering; ovate–obovate, with entire and ciliate margins, fleshy, rigid, bluish green, often lime-flecked.
Inflorescence: solitary terminating stems.
Flowers: solitary; on short stalks; fragrant; petals purple or lilac, much longer than the calyx lobes; blooming early spring towhole summer; about 13 mm in diameter; flowering June to July.
Corolla; regular, actinomorphic; purple–reddish violet; petals 5, 5 to 10 mm long.
Calyx: sepals 5.
Androecium: stamens 10, anthers blue.
Gynoecium: styles 2, fused at base.
Fruit: 2-parted capsule.