Silver leaves set off more colorful flowers while adding shimmer to your garden beds and containers.
Plants with silver leaves are among the most valuable for your landscape because they look good with anything.
Here are some of the most reliable annuals, perennials, trees, and shrubs to consider.
Credit: Lynn Karlin
Agave
Victoria Pearson
Severalvarieties of agave(Agavespp.
), such as ‘Blue Glow’ shown here, have a silvery look.
They’re low-maintenance plants that are adaptable to either ground or container planting.
Credit:Victoria Pearson
Growing Conditions:Part sun or partial shade in well-draining, humus-rich soil.
Once the curry plant (Helichrysum italicumsubsp.serotinum)matures, small, round blooms appear on the stalks.
Silver leaf plants are particularlyeffective in the shade,where their light color helps brighten dim corners.
Credit: Andrew Drake
Its silvery-green fronds flushed with burgundy-purple add depth and dimension.
The plants leaves resemble a lamb’s ear in both shape and texture.
This low-growing, spreading perennial makes an excellent groundcover for hot, dry spots,such as slopes.
Credit: Robert Cardillo
The plant’s aromatic foliage has historically been used as an insecticide and moth repellant.
It’s known for its slight licorice aroma in the heat of the summer.
Add it tohanging basketsor let it trail over a stone wall for added beauty and contrast.
Credit:Denny Schrock
It’s ashrub in warm-weather climatesbut an eye-catching annual in cooler zones.
Likemost groundcovers, it wants to grow and grow, so allow plenty of room for it to spread.
)is striking both in the garden anddried-floral crafts.
Credit:Doug Hetherington
Fortunately, this coarse, clump-forming perennial is easy to grow and not at all invasive, unlike thistles.
Low-growingSedum sieboldiishows off gray-green leaves that are often touched with pink.
Rosy-pink flowers appear in autumn, adding to this plant’s overall appeal.
Credit: Matthew Benson
It works well in containers,rock gardens, or as a groundcover.
Small, pink flowers that attract bees appear in midsummer.
The clusters of white blooms form a snow-like carpet and can even hold up tolight foot traffic.
Credit: Marty Baldwin
This plant makes an excellent addition to container gardens or flower beds that are regularly watered.
Grow thisplectranthusas an annual or bring indoors over the winter.
Some of these succulents have more pointed leaves, others are rounded or even ruffled.
Credit: Lynn Karlin
Here, clusters ofEcheveria imbricata’Blue Rose' fill a xeriscape bed along with dymondia andagave.
Growing Conditions:Full sun and dry, very well-draining soil
Plant Size:1-2 feet tall and wide
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