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Lamb’s ear: A Succulent or Not? Succulents come in a wide variety, with hundreds of different species that include, to name a few, aloes, cactus, and euphorbias. Given the degree of diversity, you could start to ask if Lamb’s ears, a plant that can withstand extreme drought well, is a type of succulent.
Not a truly succulent, lamb’s ear. It is actually a member of the Lamiaceae family, but due to its superficial resemblance to some succulent plants, it is frequently mistaken for a true succulent. The characteristic of succulent plants is that they frequently live in deserts and retain water in their leaves and stems.
Succulents are widely recognized for their ability to retain a lot of water as a result of which they may go for several days without much water. Many succulents are native to dry, arid regions including Africa, the Middle East, Mexico, and the southern United States.
What do lambs ear plants look like?
The lamb’s ear plant (Stachys byzantina), a favorite for cultivating with children, is likely to delight in almost any garden setting. The silky soft, woolly, evergreen leaves of this low-maintenance perennial range in color from silver to gray-green. Its name comes from the fact that the foliage resembles real lamb’s ears in shape. Lamb’s ear will also produce spikes of pink to purple flowers if let to blossom in the summer.
The leaves can be used as a “band-aid of sorts for healing wounds and in alleviating unpleasant bee stings in addition to enjoying its lovely, fluffy foliage.
A succulent, is Stachys byzantina?
The magnificent evergreen perennial Lamb’s Ears (Stachys byzantina) is planted mostly for its dense rosettes of glossy, velvety, silvery tongue-shaped leaves that resemble lamb’s ears and provide interest to the border. Late spring or early summer sees the emergence of pink-purple flower spikes. Cutting off their fuzzy blossoms boosts the plant’s vigor and encourages the growth of new leaves. Their fuzzy flowers offer textural interest.
- Aside from having interesting leaves, it is also drought tolerant, resistant to deer and rabbits, easy maintenance, and low watering.
- Lamb’s Ears are incredibly simple to grow, have a low, spreading habit, and make a compact mound that can reach heights of 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) or 12-18 inches (30-45 cm) in blossom with a spread of 12-36 inches (30-90 cm).
- thrives on ordinary, dry to medium, well-drained soils, in full sun or mild shade. can withstand unfavorable soil conditions.
- Wonderful for softening hard corners and pathways, edging beds, underplanting roses or shrubs, accentuating borders, and creating rock gardens. It can also be used in large quantities as a ground cover. Effective as a border perennial and filler. Its silvery leaves make the ideal contrast to plants with flowers that are either chilly or fiery in color.
Is the lamb’s ear a houseplant?
I’ve tried planting lamb’s ear in many places in my garden, and I’ve finally settled on the ideal location. It is situated in my test garden, which receives sunshine the majority of the day but receives shade from nearby trees starting at 4 o’clock. Here are some advice on how to grow this lovely perennial.
Sunlight
Lamb’s ears thrive in full sun, where they will receive many hours of sunlight every day. My test garden receives around 10 hours of sunlight each day, including about four hours of direct sunlight, and my lamb’s ears enjoy the location where I’ve placed them. It is a hardy summer flower that shines in the summer heat.
The plant will readily develop and spread as long as it receives the correct amount of sunlight and minimal water.
Watering
Stachys byzantina prefers soil with good drainage. Root rot is a result of too much water. The plant was originally in two clumps for me, one on each side of a walkway. The plants are noticeably different on the left side, which received significantly more standing water and shade than the right side.
When watering in the afternoon, especially, try to avoid getting too much water on the leaves. Lamb’s ears take little upkeep once they are established. It only need additional watering outdoors when the temperature is really high for days on end. Due to its Middle Eastern origins, the plant is highly drought tolerant.
Flowers
Late in the spring and all through the summer, the plant blooms. After flowering, prune any flowering stems near to the ground to promote the growth of new branches and leaves. On the ends of the long stalks, the flowers begin with pale green blossoms that gradually open to reveal purple flowers.
The flower stems are long, upright, and frequently branched. When the plant is fully bloomed, they can reach heights of 1 1/2 to 3 feet and put on quite a show.
Leaves
Children will adore the Stachys byzantina leaves’ texture. They range in color from silver gray to pale green and have a silky soft, wooly feel. The form is reminiscent of a lamb’s ear, hence the common name. Although the plant is usually evergreen, it might die back and look ragged during the winter months and will benefit from a spring cleaning.
Propagation
Lamb’s ears can be easily divided and grown. Divide the plant in the early spring, when as the new growth starts, every three or four years. In the spring, give the plant a good pruning near to the crown to get rid of any dead leaves. The plant will bush out and stay more compact as a result of this. As this picture illustrates, unpruned plants can soon become thin and seedy looking.
After division, amend the soil with additional organic matter and mulch the plant to keep moisture in and prevent weed growth. Stachys byzantina is a self-seeding plant that grows well from seed as well.
Cold Hardiness
In zones 4 through 8, lamb’s ears are cold-tolerant. Growing it might be difficult in the hotter climates unless your garden has a lot of afternoon shade.
Uses
The ground cover Stachys byzantina creates is beautiful. It works well to fill in portions of your borders to keep the weeds at bay because it is a dense, low-growing plant that spreads in a garden bed if it obtains the correct conditions.
This image from the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis depicts it being used in borders in a shaded location. It was exquisite and luscious!
The purple and pink blossoms are excellent for cutting. The color contrasts beautifully with the darker green hues seen in most borders.
Due to its low growth habit, lamb’s ears are best planted at the front of a garden border. This substantial cluster of lamb’s ears had its start early in the year with just a few divisions, and by the end of the summer, it had perfectly filled the space.
Additionally beautiful in a rock garden. Day lilies and dianthus are excellent companion plants. The plant grows well in pots as well, especially if they receive afternoon shade.
Although it may be grown indoors, it will need a lot of light, so a south-facing window is ideal. If you grow lamb’s ears inside, take care not to overwater it.
Wildlife
Visitors visiting gardens enjoy the appeal of lamb’s ears. It attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees, among other creatures. Deer, rabbits, and squirrels don’t like it very much.
Lamb’s ears make wonderful clumps of low-spreading plants that you may enjoy for many years if you plant them in a sunny place and prune the flowers when they are finished.
Does lamb’s ear prefer shade or the sun?
Different types of lamb’s ears can endure dry weather and poor soil. The one thing that it won’t put up with is drenched ground. Although it may tolerate little shade, this plant thrives in full sun. Because it will grow less thick hairs in the shadow, the plant will appear greener.
In the garden, this plant can spread quickly and can become invasive. Lamb’s ear develops creeping stems that embed themselves into the ground, forming substantial leaf mats. The plants may simply be pulled up where you don’t want them because the roots aren’t particularly thick. However, because of their propensity to spread, lamb’s ear types make good groundcover in conditions with direct sunlight or poor soil. Removing the flower stalks before they go to seed will prevent lamb’s ear from spreading because it seeds itself readily.
Can you grow lambs ear in pots?
It is simple to grow lamb’s ears. The following seven steps:
- Plant 4-inch pots in medium shade to full sun, 18 to 24 inches apart. As plants grow, keep them well-watered.
- Grow on compost-enriched, well-drained soil with no additional fertilizer. Rich soil does not appeal to lamb’s ears. The soil should be evenly moist to dry.
- Avoid using overhead sprinklers to water plants, and in the summer, cut away any overgrowth to avoid rot. Plants that experience humid summers will rot out from the center.
- If necessary, divide in the spring every three to four years, or just remove the foliage’s dead cores to maintain clusters.
- To assist leaves recuperate and stay soft and green, remove blooms before they set seed.
- To stop the spread of disease, remove any dried or rotten leaves.
- Diseased foliage attracts sow bugs. During the growing season, getting rid of dead leaves will help deter them.
How should a lamb’s ear plant be cared for?
Only approximately an inch of water each week is required for lamb’s ears. Only water the soil if it seems dry. Although lamb’s ears can withstand dryness, dry spells cause them to lose some of their older leaves. The leaves will decay, develop fungal leaf spots or powdery mildew if they become too wet, so avoid watering the tops of the plants.
Can lamb’s ear be propagated from cuttings?
Although it is possible to grow it from cuttings, this technique of propagation has a low success rate, and mature plants can easily be divided in its place.
From Seed
When pollination is successful after flowering, lamb’s ears yield seeds that are viable. You can obtain other variations, like “Primrose Heron” and “Wave Hill,” by purchasing seeds.
Big Ears is the kind that one sees most frequently in nurseries, and it might be challenging to locate rhizomes or live examples of other cultivars.
The seeds germinate in about 30 days, which is depressing, especially given that their germination rate is frequently low.
When propagating seeds, many gardeners have a tendency to overwater, which frequently causes mold issues before the seeds germinate and ultimately results in failure to grow.
To combat these issues, use a permeable seed-starting mix in trays or containers that can drain effectively and refrain from overwatering.
Start at least eight weeks before your typical last frost date if you still choose to start your plants from seed. Use starter trays with seed-starting soil, if possible.
What distinguishes mullein from lamb’s ear?
Lamb’s ear is a plant that I never considered to be grown because I see it growing wild all over this area. However, it is popular in beds and borders because of its silvery-green, texturized leaves that are fashioned like, you got it, a lamb’s ear. Since it is, as I stated, dispersed throughout, I’m not sure why I was unaware that it had blossomed. Since it’s one of those plants that they don’t want to eat, I can’t really blame the animals. A grazed-down field with lamb’s ear sprouting up everywhere will be visible. I have a few of what is truly thought to be an invasive plant in my herb garden.
I was quite aback by how lovely the blooms are. This one is just starting to flower and it even has a bug!
When someone recently noted that they used lamb’s ear in salads, my interest in the product was piqued. Since animals will disregard it in a field, I had always imagined there was something unfavorable about it, therefore I had to look into it. The leaves, presuming they are edible, seem a little fuzzy.
I discovered that although it’s uncommon, some people do consume the leaves. Because the thought typically causes people to curl their tongues and close their jaws. Animals also respond the same way, despite the fact that the plant isn’t hazardous to them (as far as I can tell). It is, nonetheless, edible.
Due to its antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptic qualities, it has also been used as a medicinal plant for a very long time. The fluffy leaves can be used as improvised dressings because they are absorbent.
I discovered there are two quite similar plants during the course of my research. mullein with lamb’s ear. When the lamb’s ear publications continued mentioning the pink or purple blossoms, I realized this fact. My blooms are unmistakably yellow. The main variations between the two plants are as follows:
Verbascum thapsus, the plant known as mullein, develops as a “foliage rosette with a central stalk that bears yellow blooms. Stachys byzantina, often known as lamb’s ear, forms a “clump of foliage” and has pinkish-purple flowers. Although the leaves of the two plants are very similar, lamb’s ear leaves are softer and mullein grows much taller. The color of the blossoms provides the most evident and straightforward identification. I’m holding wild mullein here. So, can you eat mullein? Absolutely, it is! Similar to lamb’s ear, it has a long list of medical benefits as well as edible status and a general lack of interest among humans and animals in eating it. It can be intrusive, just as lamb’s ear. Furthermore, it doesn’t blossom the first year, which may be why I’ve noticed it so frequently in our fields that isn’t blooming. We probably don’t get a lot of second-year mullein around here in the areas where it’s most obvious because of trampling or turning over land, etc. These adult blooming mulleins were given to me since they are safe in my garden.
I feel like a total genius for making this revolutionary botanical discovery because I’ve never heard anyone around here refer to this as anything other than lamb’s ear. I took control of this untamed mullein, learning its mysteries all by myself. I enjoy humiliating the “old farmers” whenever I can.
Do you mean lamb’s ear? That is actually wild mullein. Check out the golden blossoms. the rosette of foliage? You see, it’s Verbascum thapsus. A Stachys byzantina is not.
After that, the elderly farmers run me over with their rusted tractors and decorate my grave with some yellow “lamb’s ear flowers.”
Do you trim back lamb’s ears in the fall?
A patch of Lamb’s Ear resembles a velvet cloak draped over a garden bed due to its fuzzy silver-green leaves and propensity to grow in thick clumps.
Stachys byzantina, a perennial, looks great as an edging plant, a low, thick ground cover, or at the base of bushes. Each Lamb’s Ear mound will sprout spiky purple flowers in the summer. In order to stop the fuzzy leaves from decomposing, trim it back in the late fall.
In the front of a flower bed, Lamb’s Ear will cover in any holes or bare spots and conceal the leafless rose skeletons. According to our contributor Kier Holmes, the plant’s silvery leaves “give a calming cohesiveness and balance in a garden with too many flower colors or a disorganized garden bed,” and its evergreen leaves “help maintain a landscape visually intact during scarce winters.”