Stachys byzantina is a charming and unpretentious plant with silvery fluffy leaves.
He settled in my garden a long time ago: a neighbor shared the branches, which have since turned into magnificent fleecy “mats” and spread out in different flower beds.
The plants are still small, but next season they will form a beautiful lawn, and in a year it will be possible to settle further.
There are countless ways to use this plant in flower beds. This is an excellent border: bushes without peduncles are low, grow very densely and due to the elegant silver color of the foliage create a spectacular frame of flower beds or garden paths.
Lamb’s ear looks great and feels great in rockeries, on retaining walls, in rocky gardens. It is undemanding to the soil, easily tolerates drought, loves light, an ideal plant for rock gardens.
On the other hand, in partial shade, it also grows well, and therefore it can be successfully planted under bushes. In such a composition, the cool color and unusual texture of the leaves can be a winning accent. It is only important to make sure that the shade is not too thick, and the neighbors are undemanding to food. On too fertile soil and with a lack of light, it can turn green, losing its charm.
Endless scope for imagination is left by all sorts of combinations of lamb’s ear with other decorative and deciduous plants. Here, for example, is how he settled between my Hosts and a cypress milkweed on the shore of the pond
The Sheep’s Ear’s own flowers are tall, often unstable stems that make planting untidy. Therefore, I try to prune them; when the plant is grown as an ornamental foliage, this procedure is very desirable. Moreover, the care of the Lamb’s ear actually ends there.
But how expressive is the luxurious, silky foliage against the background of other flowers! Thanks to its neutral color, it is appropriate in almost any composition and will look new every time. I especially like restrained, noble combinations with blue and white colors, but red, yellow, pink, lilac look, perhaps, no worse. Here, take a look, for example: A lamb’s ear on a background of blooming green onions.
By the way, both spring and autumn are suitable for planting this plant. At the same time, you can divide old, overgrown plants, rooted shoots of which are easily separated and take root well in a new place.
I read that in regions where it is cool, light shelter for plants is recommended, but mine winters well without it. And in early spring, you just need to remove the old, brown and dried leaves and make sure that the roots in the water do not stagnate — this is its main enemy, causing root rot and plant death.
And I like to stroke the leaves, which are soft and extremely pleasant to the touch.
If you do not have Stachys byzantina growing in your garden, try to find a small corner for it. I’m sure you’ll love these nice “Lamb Ears”!