Stachys byzantina / Lambs Ear

6/11/10

Stachys 

byzantina

I have two different cultivars, with different leaf sizes and coloration, but I don't know what the names are.

I am not crazy about lambs ear, but it does provide a background groundcover contrast for other plants, and it spills out over the walk.  Mine are planted along the west walk, interspersed with the sedum 'Angelina' and under the woody shrubs.

The soft fuzzy blue leaves are actually quite nice with the golden Hakone grass.

Lambs ear gets very ratty looking over winter and needs a good cut and clean up each spring.  It spreads well.  The tall awkward bloom spikes are odd, not attractive in my opinion, and I cut them back.

5/30/17

I also put a bunch of lambs ear on the back side of the spruce berm. I'm trying to get it to spread on the farther end under the spicebushes, but it's still pretty sparse until it fills in.