Lamb's Ear
Lamb's Ear
Lamb's Ear
Lamb's Ear
Lamb's Ear

Multi Buy

Size Guide
3.5
3.5" Perennial
3 or more $6.00 ea
Regularly: $6.99 ea

Lamb's Ear

Scott's Nursery Ltd.

$3.50
Title
Introduce an irresistible, ultra-plush touch of sensory magic to your garden with this beloved botanical treasure. Stachys byzantina forms an exquisitely dense, sprawling carpet of thick, velvety leaves wrapped in a dense coat of silvery-white, silky hairs that mimic the soft ears of a lamb. This luminous, glowing groundcover catches the morning dew like diamonds, creating a shimmering, high-definition silver border that effortlessly softens hard garden lines and begs to be touched.

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Plant Details

Mature Size:

6" - 8" H x 12" - 18" W

Zone:

4-8

Watering:

Low

Type:

Herbaceous Perennial

Growth Rate:

Moderate - Fast

Light:

Full Sun

Plant Profile

Common Names:

Lamb's Ear, Woolly Betony, Donkey's Ears, and Lamb's Tail

Scientific Name:

Stachys byzantina

Type:

Tactile Groundcover / Silver Accent / Border Spiller

Growth Details:

Mature Size: 6" - 8" H x 12" - 18" W (Flower spikes can reach up to 12" - 18" H).

Growth Habit: Creeping, spreading, and mat-forming.

Form: Low, dense, dense felted cushions.

Growth Rate: Medium to fast.

Flowering Time: Early to mid-summer (typically June to July).

Flower Colour: Small, hooded, inconspicuous light purple-pink blossoms tightly wrapped in dense silver wool.

Environmental Needs:

Exposure: Full Sun (Handles light afternoon shade in exceptionally hot, arid regions).

Soil Preferences: Prefers poor, dry, gritty, sandy, or rocky soils with flawless internal drainage.

Soil Tolerance: Highly adaptable to infertile, low-nutrient, or alkaline soils, but completely intolerant of wet, heavy winter clay.

Watering: Provide light watering only during its initial planting phase; highly drought-tolerant once the root network establishes.

Container Role: Functions as an outstanding, texture-rich Filler or softly cascading Spiller along the outer rims of mixed patio containers.

Special Features:

Sensory Appeal: The thick, velvety, fur-like leaves offer exceptional tactile interest, making it a mandatory favorite for children's and therapeutic gardens.

Drought & Heat Resistant: Highly specialized woolly hairs insulate the leaves, reducing water loss and allowing the plant to shrug off intense mid-summer heatwaves.

Deer & Rabbit Resistance: The heavily felted, fuzzy texture is highly unpalatable to foraging wildlife, making it completely deer-proof.

Attracts: Provides critical nesting material for beneficial Wool Carder bees, who scrape the soft hairs from the leaves to line their nests.
Care Guide

Ornamental & Landscape Value

Seasonal Interest:

Bloom Information: Produces stiff, heavily woolled flower spires loaded with tiny pink-purple flowers that add a rustic, architectural element to the plant.

Perennial and Annual Interest: Outstanding year-round value; the thick, felted silver leaves remain evergreen through mild winters, providing immediate structure as soon as the snow melts before expanding into a flawless, shimmering silver carpet all summer long

Garden Value:

Ornamental Interest: Offers unmatched tactile interest with thick, heavily felted silver-gray leaves that provide a striking cool contrast against bright green companion plants.

Landscaping Uses: Essential choice for structural border edgings, kids' sensory gardens, dry rock beds, sun-baked slopes, and low-maintenance pathway framing.

Wildlife & Human Value:

Wildlife Value: Supplies a unique, critical nesting resource for specialized native bees and offers a sturdy landing platform for passing pollinators.

Human Value: Eliminates the need for constant seasonal mulching once filled in, provides an excellent low-maintenance border marker, and serves as a classic tool for introducing children to the joy of plants.

Planting & Care Guide

Planting Considerations:

Best Time To Plant: Plant out young potted starts early in the spring or in early autumn to establish roots in cool, accommodating weather.

Spacing: Space individual crowns 12" to 15" apart to allow them to fuse cleanly into a solid, weed-suppressing silver ribbon.

Location Tips: Select highly exposed, elevated areas or slopes where gravity clears excess rainwater; avoid humid, unventilated corners.

Companion Plants: Pairs magnificently with purple Salvia, upright pink Echinacea, or fine-textured yellow Coreopsis for brilliant colour and form contrast.

Care:

Light Requirements: Thrives best in absolute full sun; needs at least 6 hours of unshaded daily sunlight to preserve the intense silver wool and keep the foliage tight.

Moisture Requirements: Requires sharp, fast drainage; highly drought-resistant and prone to rapid rotting if left sitting in heavy, stagnant moisture.

Maintenance: Cut off the upright flower stalks at their base as soon as they finish blooming to redirect the plant's energy into fresh, tight foliage growth.

Fertilization: Strictly avoid fertilizing this plant; it performs best in poor, lean soils, and extra nutrients will cause mushy, weak, green growth.

Tolerances:

Tolerates severe drought, rocky or poor soil, high summer heat, air pollution, intense deer pressure, and rabbit foraging.

Tips For Success:

Water the Base: Direct your irrigation strictly at the soil level; overhead watering traps moisture within the fuzzy leaves, causing them to rot or develop fungal spots.

Mid-Summer Cleanup: Pull away any older, melted, or brown bottom leaves during humid summer stretches to keep the center of the mound looking clean, crisp, and well-ventilated.

Spring Cleansing: Gently comb through or cut away dead, winter-damaged foliage in early spring before fresh, velvety silver shoots emerge.
Fruit Profile