Woolly sunflower

Sun

Full sun; tolerates light shade but flowers less freely.

Water

Low once established. Water during establishment, then give occasional deep watering during prolonged drought; avoid persistently damp soil.

Soil

Lean, well-drained sandy, gravelly or rocky soil. Avoid heavy, wet soil, especially in winter.

Height

0.5-2 ft (0.15-0.6 m), occasionally taller depending on the form

Spread

1-2 ft (0.3-0.6 m)

Flowers

Golden-yellow daisy flowers from late spring through summer; timing and duration vary with climate and moisture.

Foliage

Small, woolly grey-green leaves, often lobed, on low branching stems. Leaves may persist in mild winters but die back in colder areas.

Growth

Moderate

Care needed

Low

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1 ft (0.3 m)

2. After 1 year

   1.1 ft (0.32 m)

3. After 2 years

   1.1 ft (0.35 m)

4. After 3 years

   1.2 ft (0.38 m)

   full size

About 3 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Native to

the US and Canada

Growth rate

Moderate

• Water regularly through the first growing season, allowing the surface soil to dry between waterings.
• Once established, water deeply but infrequently during extended dry spells.
• Do not routinely fertilize; rich feeding encourages loose growth.
• Use a thin gravel mulch rather than moisture-retentive organic mulch around the crown.
• In wet climates, plant on a slope, raised bed or gravel mound to keep the roots drained.

Pruning. Remove faded flower stems to encourage further bloom, or leave some seed heads for wildlife and self-seeding. In early spring, trim out dead stems and lightly shorten untidy growth without cutting hard into old, leafless wood.

Early spring

Remove winter-killed stems and lightly tidy established plants as new growth appears.

Spring

Plant into freely draining soil and water thoroughly; avoid burying the crown.

Late spring

Check young plants during dry weather and water when the root zone begins to dry.

Summer

Remove spent flowers for a tidier display, leaving some heads if you want seed.

Late summer

Collect dry seed heads before the seeds disperse.

Autumn

Sow seed outdoors and clear fallen leaves away from the crown to reduce winter damp.

• Plant along the front of sunny dry borders, where the silver-grey foliage contrasts with darker leaves.
• Use in gravel gardens and rock gardens with low penstemons and stonecrops.
• Group with drought-tolerant western North American natives for a naturalistic pollinator planting.
• Place on sunny banks or beside paving where drainage is good and the yellow flowers can spill toward the edge.

Garden styles it suits: Dry gravel garden, Desert / xeriscape, Pollinator garden, California native, Pacific Northwest woodland and Wildflower.

Plant it with: California poppy, Blue flax, Sulphur buckwheat, Prairie junegrass, Broadleaf stonecrop and Penstemon.

Wildlife: Flowers provide pollen and nectar for native bees and other visiting insects. Retained seed heads can provide food for small seed-eating birds.

• Root or crown rot in wet soil: improve drainage or move the plant to a raised, gravelly position; avoid winter irrigation.
• Floppy growth and fewer flowers in shade or rich soil: provide full sun and stop feeding.
• Aphids on tender shoots: rinse them off with water and allow predators to control small colonies.
• Poor establishment during hot, dry weather: plant in spring or early autumn and water the developing root system rather than relying on its eventual drought tolerance.

Not known to be toxic to people, cats, dogs or horses, but species-specific safety information is limited. No plant part is established as a serious poisoning hazard; it is not a food plant and should not be deliberately eaten.

• Golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertiflorum)

  Usually has more finely divided leaves and dense clusters of much smaller yellow flower heads, rather than the larger, more distinct daisies of woolly sunflower.

• Arrowleaf balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata)

  Has much larger, arrow-shaped leaves arising mainly from the base and larger yellow flower heads on long stalks.

Eriophyllum means woolly-leaved in Greek, and lanatum means woolly in Latin, both referring to the plant's hairy foliage.

Propagation. Grow from seed sown outdoors in autumn; some seed sources germinate better after a period of cold, moist conditions. Take non-flowering softwood cuttings in late spring or early summer to preserve a particular plant's form.

Accepted botanical name

Eriophyllum lanatum

In the US and Canada

Native in Canada and the lower 48 states.

Native range

British Columbia, California, Idaho, Mexico Northwest, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.