Stachys byzantina 140mm pot Lambs Ears
Description
Stachys byzantina 140mm Pot – Lamb's Ears
Soft Silver Groundcover – Drought Tolerant Border & Edging Plant
Add soft silver texture to your garden with Stachys byzantina — one of the best low-growing groundcover plants for sunny, well-drained positions. Known as Lamb's Ears for its thick, velvety, silver-grey foliage, this hardy perennial forms a spreading mat that contrasts beautifully against green foliage, dark mulch, stone and modern hardscaping.
Perfect for garden edging, rockeries, cottage borders and pots, these healthy 140mm plants establish quickly and spread to fill gaps within a season.
Popular Search Terms:
- Silver foliage plant
- Groundcover for full sun
- Drought tolerant border plant
- Lambs Ear plant
Plant Details
Current Height Approx. 150mm to 200mm tall from the top of the pot
Pot Size 140mm
Plant Weight Approx. 0.5kg each
Recommended Spacing Plant between 300mm and 400mm apart depending on how quickly you would like the area to fill in.
Why Choose Stachys byzantina?
This much-loved perennial is grown almost entirely for its foliage — thick, woolly, silver-white leaves that are irresistibly soft to touch and hold their colour year-round in the right position.
In late spring and summer it sends up upright spikes of small mauve-purple flowers that are highly attractive to bees and beneficial pollinators. Many gardeners remove these spikes to keep the plant low and neat as a pure foliage carpet — both approaches work beautifully.
Unlike thirstier groundcovers, Lamb's Ears is genuinely drought tolerant once established, making it a smart, water-wise choice for hot, dry, sunny spots where other plants struggle.
Features
- Soft, velvety silver-grey foliage
- Fast-spreading mat-forming groundcover
- Extremely drought tolerant once established
- Frost hardy
- Mauve-purple flower spikes in late spring to summer
- Bee and pollinator attracting
- Excellent foliage contrast plant
- Low maintenance and easy to divide
- Ideal for sensory and children's gardens
Position
Full sun for best silver colour. Tolerates light morning shade, but avoid damp, shaded or poorly ventilated spots.
Ideal For
- Garden edging and border fronts
- Rockeries and gravel gardens
- Cottage and Mediterranean-style gardens
- Dry, hot, sunny banks
- Underplanting roses, olives and salvias
- Sensory and children's gardens
- Pots, troughs and balcony containers
- General landscaping and mass planting
Groundcover Planting Guide
Recommended Spacing Plant approximately 300mm to 400mm apart for a continuous carpet. Space wider if you prefer defined individual clumps.
Height at Maturity Foliage sits at approximately 150mm to 200mm tall, with flower spikes reaching approximately 400mm to 450mm. Spread of approximately 500mm to 900mm per plant over time.
Environmental Requirements
Soil Requires free-draining soil. Sandy, gritty and rocky soils are ideal. Heavy clay or poorly drained beds should be improved with coarse sand, gypsum and compost, or raised to improve drainage.
Climate Suits temperate, Mediterranean and cool climates. Performs well in Sydney gardens when given full sun, good airflow and sharp drainage.
Durability Very tough in heat, frost and drought. Its one weakness is prolonged wet and humidity — position and drainage are everything with this plant.
Care Tips
Water sparingly once established — this plant far prefers dry feet to wet ones.
Always water at soil level rather than overhead. Wet, woolly foliage is slow to dry and is the main cause of rot and fungal marking.
Apply a light application of slow-release fertiliser in early spring. Avoid heavy feeding, as rich soil produces soft, floppy growth.
Lift and divide clumps every two to three years to keep the planting vigorous and even.
Important Trimming Advice
Remove old, tatty or blackened leaves at the base as they appear, particularly after humid or wet periods. This improves airflow and keeps the planting looking fresh.
Cut back flower spikes after flowering, or remove them as they emerge if you want a low, uniform silver carpet.
The best time for a hard tidy-up is early spring, as new growth begins. Avoid cutting back hard in the middle of a wet or humid stretch, as recovery will be slow.
Remember: the more regularly you remove spent foliage, the denser and more silver your planting stays.
Design Benefits
- Outstanding silver contrast against green, burgundy and dark foliage
- Softens hard edges of paths, steps and retaining walls
- Excellent low-water alternative to lawn edging
- Beautiful spilling over the rim of pots and troughs
- Reliable repeat plant for rhythm through long borders
Important Information
Tired of Lamb's Ears turning to mush over summer?
Nine times out of ten it isn't the plant — it's the position. Stachys byzantina needs full sun, sharp drainage and open airflow. Planted in heavy soil, dense shade or under sprinklers, the woolly foliage stays wet and collapses.
Get those three things right and this is one of the toughest, lowest-maintenance foliage plants you can grow.
We supply strong, well-hardened stock grown for Australian conditions — not soft, forced plants that struggle the moment they hit the garden.
Description
Stachys byzantina 140mm Pot – Lamb's Ears
Soft Silver Groundcover – Drought Tolerant Border & Edging Plant
Add soft silver texture to your garden with Stachys byzantina — one of the best low-growing groundcover plants for sunny, well-drained positions. Known as Lamb's Ears for its thick, velvety, silver-grey foliage, this hardy perennial forms a spreading mat that contrasts beautifully against green foliage, dark mulch, stone and modern hardscaping.
Perfect for garden edging, rockeries, cottage borders and pots, these healthy 140mm plants establish quickly and spread to fill gaps within a season.
Popular Search Terms:
- Silver foliage plant
- Groundcover for full sun
- Drought tolerant border plant
- Lambs Ear plant
Plant Details
Current Height Approx. 150mm to 200mm tall from the top of the pot
Pot Size 140mm
Plant Weight Approx. 0.5kg each
Recommended Spacing Plant between 300mm and 400mm apart depending on how quickly you would like the area to fill in.
Why Choose Stachys byzantina?
This much-loved perennial is grown almost entirely for its foliage — thick, woolly, silver-white leaves that are irresistibly soft to touch and hold their colour year-round in the right position.
In late spring and summer it sends up upright spikes of small mauve-purple flowers that are highly attractive to bees and beneficial pollinators. Many gardeners remove these spikes to keep the plant low and neat as a pure foliage carpet — both approaches work beautifully.
Unlike thirstier groundcovers, Lamb's Ears is genuinely drought tolerant once established, making it a smart, water-wise choice for hot, dry, sunny spots where other plants struggle.
Features
- Soft, velvety silver-grey foliage
- Fast-spreading mat-forming groundcover
- Extremely drought tolerant once established
- Frost hardy
- Mauve-purple flower spikes in late spring to summer
- Bee and pollinator attracting
- Excellent foliage contrast plant
- Low maintenance and easy to divide
- Ideal for sensory and children's gardens
Position
Full sun for best silver colour. Tolerates light morning shade, but avoid damp, shaded or poorly ventilated spots.
Ideal For
- Garden edging and border fronts
- Rockeries and gravel gardens
- Cottage and Mediterranean-style gardens
- Dry, hot, sunny banks
- Underplanting roses, olives and salvias
- Sensory and children's gardens
- Pots, troughs and balcony containers
- General landscaping and mass planting
Groundcover Planting Guide
Recommended Spacing Plant approximately 300mm to 400mm apart for a continuous carpet. Space wider if you prefer defined individual clumps.
Height at Maturity Foliage sits at approximately 150mm to 200mm tall, with flower spikes reaching approximately 400mm to 450mm. Spread of approximately 500mm to 900mm per plant over time.
Environmental Requirements
Soil Requires free-draining soil. Sandy, gritty and rocky soils are ideal. Heavy clay or poorly drained beds should be improved with coarse sand, gypsum and compost, or raised to improve drainage.
Climate Suits temperate, Mediterranean and cool climates. Performs well in Sydney gardens when given full sun, good airflow and sharp drainage.
Durability Very tough in heat, frost and drought. Its one weakness is prolonged wet and humidity — position and drainage are everything with this plant.
Care Tips
Water sparingly once established — this plant far prefers dry feet to wet ones.
Always water at soil level rather than overhead. Wet, woolly foliage is slow to dry and is the main cause of rot and fungal marking.
Apply a light application of slow-release fertiliser in early spring. Avoid heavy feeding, as rich soil produces soft, floppy growth.
Lift and divide clumps every two to three years to keep the planting vigorous and even.
Important Trimming Advice
Remove old, tatty or blackened leaves at the base as they appear, particularly after humid or wet periods. This improves airflow and keeps the planting looking fresh.
Cut back flower spikes after flowering, or remove them as they emerge if you want a low, uniform silver carpet.
The best time for a hard tidy-up is early spring, as new growth begins. Avoid cutting back hard in the middle of a wet or humid stretch, as recovery will be slow.
Remember: the more regularly you remove spent foliage, the denser and more silver your planting stays.
Design Benefits
- Outstanding silver contrast against green, burgundy and dark foliage
- Softens hard edges of paths, steps and retaining walls
- Excellent low-water alternative to lawn edging
- Beautiful spilling over the rim of pots and troughs
- Reliable repeat plant for rhythm through long borders
Important Information
Tired of Lamb's Ears turning to mush over summer?
Nine times out of ten it isn't the plant — it's the position. Stachys byzantina needs full sun, sharp drainage and open airflow. Planted in heavy soil, dense shade or under sprinklers, the woolly foliage stays wet and collapses.
Get those three things right and this is one of the toughest, lowest-maintenance foliage plants you can grow.
We supply strong, well-hardened stock grown for Australian conditions — not soft, forced plants that struggle the moment they hit the garden.