5 Plants With Silver Leaves

Nature Hills Nursery | February 14, 2026

Sometimes, you just need something different in your yard! Something not just green!

Many of your plants may have colorful flowers, but before and after those blooms, you need something showy that is sure to stand out for the rest of the growing season!

Introducing plants with silver foliage!

Five More Plants With Silver Leaves!
1. Silver Buffaloberry Bushes
2. Silver Heart Brunnera
3. Liriope Silver Dragon
4. Moonglow Juniper
5. Lamb’s Ears
Bring On The Bling

Sometimes, you need something that adds a subtle yet high-impact color to your garden! That extra bit of sparkle and glitz! Especially in shadier areas where conditions can get dark with only green plants. Enter silver foliage plants!

In addition to our previous list, we included Silver Edge Lavender, Ghost Ferns, Silver Mound Artemisia, Silver Anniversary Abelia, and Raspberry Splash Lungwort. Here are five more plants that will add that bit of bling to the green of your garden with their silvery foliage!

1. Silver Buffaloberry Bushes

Buffaloberry

The Silver Buffaloberry Bush (Shepherdia argentea) is one of those garden enigmas that offers everything a garden wants but with a twist! The Buffaloberry's tart fruit is considered one of the most beneficial superfoods you can find.

The pretty red berries pop against the silvery hairs of the leaves, and the unusual silver bark! What else makes this rarely offered shrub a garden winner? Buffaloberry is extremely drought-tolerant and spreads wide without getting too tall!

The Silver Buffaloberry makes a great choice for poor soils and anywhere you want to restore native beauty. This shrub creates an impassable thorny thicket, so it can be utilized as a screen, windbreak, or erosion control while shining and glinting in the sun!

2. Silver Heart Brunnera

Silver Heart

Brighten the low ground with the huge leaves of Silver Heart Brunnera (Brunnera macrophylla 'Silver Heart'). Also known as Great Forget-Me-Not, this perennial’s charm adds silvery and deep-green-hued color to your partially-shaded or fully-shaded landscape! You won't believe the visual impact of the showy green veins. The look is only accentuated by an effective, interveinal silvery-white overlay.

Each of Brunnera's heart-shaped leaves is further polished with a band of green at the margin. But with beloved Brunnera, it's not just about the beautiful rosette of silvery leaves. Each spring, you'll also enjoy fine-textured blue Forget-Me-Not flowers held high for easy viewing! They'll softly spread wide to ornament otherwise bare ground under trees and shrubs. Relax and let the cares of the world fall away as you tour your woodlands and shady glens as the silver sheen shines despite heat and humidity. Boost your mature trees and tall shrubs with the good looks of Silver Heart Brunnera!

3. Liriope Silver Dragon

An attractive evergreen perennial with long, arching, slender grass-like leaves, Silver Dragon Liriope has a silvery stripe down the length of each. The blades glint and shine as they shimmer in the breeze, accented by their lilac-colored blooms. These smaller plants give way to greenish berries in the autumn!

These are amazing groundcovers by way of spreading underground rhizomes. Silver Dragon is gorgeous erosion control and edging. The bright variegated leaves make a super edging plant that highlights partially shaded beds. Silver Dragon brings a sense of light into darker plantings or woodland gardens, too!

4. Moonglow Juniper

Moon Glow Juniper

Straight as a silver arrow, the Moonglow Juniper (Juniperus scopulorum 'Moonglow') provides incredible color and upright form, plus superb texture for your landscaping needs! The fine-textured branches of this Juniper have scale-like, overlapping leaves that range from silver-blue to silver-green year-round! The feathery appearance and deceivingly soft, Moonglow adds a cooling, soothing hue to your landscape!

Further accented by silver-blue berries, these evergreens are an amazing sculptural element for the garden! With dense, compact branching habit and upwards-pointing branching, Moonglow Juniper trees are attractive landscape accents! Salt and urban-,condition-tolerant, these are very easy-to-grow shimmering garden accents!

For structural and architectural garden presence, Moonglow is a radiant backbone for your garden beds and borders. Moonglow is conducive to pruning, so these dramatically colored plants can be used for topiary.

5. Lamb’s Ears

The ultimate in silver foliage and touchably soft leaves, Helen Von Stein Lamb's Ear and the common Lambs Ears perennials have luxuriously silver fuzz that covers each leaf and stem in velvety beauty! Helen von Stein is a little larger than your average Lamb's Ear, in both leaf size and shape. Reaching a height of 10 inches and a spread of 18-24 inches, but both varieties add so much texture to any spot in the garden regardless of the size of your space!

Loving sun and shade, these lower-growing, spreading perennials tend to colonize an area, creating easy mass plantings throughout Sensory and Children’s Gardens, and in long rows to define and soften the edges of the garden bed, border, and walkway. Imagine a fuzzy groundcover of cooling silver-green, creeping and winding throughout your perennial gardens and mixed-shrub borders! With formal color and country garden texture, Lambs Ears fits into any style!

Bring On The Bling!

Superb sterling silver leaves, these gorgeous plants will light up the landscape with their beauty! Melding with every color of flowers and other foliage colors, silver foliage ties entire landscapes together wonderfully!

Include this unique accent color and you’ll quickly see how it has main character energy in the Moon Garden, Meditation nook, and around water features throughout both sun and shade!

Check out all the unique flower and foliage colors available at Nature Hills Nursery and create the garden of your dreams with some silver sparkle today!

Happy Planting!

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Frequently Asked Questions

What causes silver leaves on plants, and how does it help them in hot, dry conditions?

Silver leaves result from tiny reflective hairs or waxy coatings that cover the leaf surface, which reflect sunlight and reduce water loss through transpiration. This adaptation helps plants like Silver Buffaloberry and Lamb's Ears survive extreme drought and heat by keeping leaf temperatures cooler and conserving moisture. These silver-foliaged plants typically thrive in zones 3-9 and perform best in full sun with well-draining soil. Plant them in your hottest, driest spots where other plants struggle, and avoid overwatering to maintain their distinctive silvery appearance.

Which silver-leafed plants are best for full sun and drought-tolerant gardens?

For full sun and drought-tolerant gardens, Silver Buffaloberry (Shepherdia argentea) stands out as an exceptional choice, thriving in poor soils while creating a wide, thorny screen that won't exceed moderate heights. Silver Mound Artemisia also excels in hot, dry conditions with its compact mounding habit and fine-textured silvery foliage. Moonglow Juniper provides year-round structure with its upright form and blue-silver needles that intensify in winter. Plant these in well-draining soil and space according to mature width for best drought performance.

How do I prevent lamb's ears from rotting or declining due to overwatering?

Lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina) requires excellent drainage and should be watered only when the top 2-3 inches of soil are completely dry. Plant in well-draining soil amended with coarse sand or gravel, and avoid overhead watering which can cause the fuzzy leaves to retain moisture and rot. In humid climates or heavy clay soils, space plants 18-24 inches apart to improve air circulation. Water at soil level early in the morning so any moisture on leaves can dry quickly before evening.

What USDA hardiness zones are suitable for growing silver-leafed plants like Dusty Miller or lamb's ears outdoors?

Most silver-leafed plants like Dusty Miller and lamb's ears thrive in USDA zones 4-10, though specific hardiness varies by species. Dusty Miller (Senecio cineraria) performs best in zones 7-10 as a perennial but can be grown as an annual in colder zones. Lamb's ears (Stachys byzantina) is hardier, surviving winters in zones 4-8 with proper drainage. Check the specific zone requirements for your chosen silver-leafed variety and provide winter protection in borderline zones.

Can silver-leaf plants like Dusty Miller or Dichondra ‘Silver Falls’ thrive in shade?

Most silver-leaf plants like Dusty Miller prefer full sun to maintain their vibrant silvery color, but Dichondra 'Silver Falls' can tolerate partial shade while still showcasing its cascading silver foliage. For deeper shade areas, consider Silver Heart Brunnera, which thrives in partial shade conditions and produces large silvery-green leaves that brighten dark corners of the garden. Plant shade-tolerant silver varieties like Brunnera in zones 3-8 during spring after the last frost for best establishment.

How far apart should I plant lamb's ears or snow-in-summer as groundcovers?

For lamb's ears groundcover, space plants 12-18 inches apart in zones 4-8, allowing them to spread and fill in naturally within one growing season. Snow-in-summer should be planted 18-24 inches apart in zones 3-7, as it spreads more aggressively and needs extra room to prevent overcrowding. Both establish quickly in well-draining soil and full to partial sun. Plant in spring after the last frost for best establishment before winter.

Why do silver leaves on plants like helicrysum pucker, and how can I fix it?

Silver leaves on helichrysum typically pucker due to overwatering, poor drainage, or fungal issues in humid conditions. This Mediterranean plant thrives in zones 8-11 with well-draining soil and prefers to dry out between waterings. Puckered leaves often indicate root stress from soggy soil or leaf spot diseases that develop in consistently moist environments. Move your plant to a sunnier location with better air circulation, reduce watering frequency, and remove affected foliage to prevent spread.

Are there silver-leafed perennials that deer and rabbits avoid, like fuzzy lamb's ears?

Yes, several silver-leafed perennials naturally repel deer and rabbits due to their fuzzy, aromatic, or bitter characteristics. Lamb's Ears (Stachys byzantina) remains the top choice with its thick, woolly texture that animals avoid, thriving in zones 4-8 and reaching 12-18 inches tall. Silver Mound Artemisia offers similar protection with its pungent, silvery foliage and compact 12-inch mound habit in zones 3-9. Plant these drought-tolerant perennials in full sun with well-draining soil for the best silver color and natural pest resistance.

What companions pair best with silver plants in borders or containers?

Silver foliage plants create stunning contrasts when paired with deep burgundy or purple companions like Heuchera 'Palace Purple' and dark-leafed Coleus. For borders, combine them with plants featuring bold textures such as broad-leafed Hostas or spiky ornamental grasses like Fountain Grass. In containers, silver plants shine alongside jewel-toned flowers - try pairing Lamb's Ears with deep purple Petunias or bright magenta Calibrachoa for maximum impact. Space silver plants 18-24 inches apart to showcase their reflective qualities while allowing companion plants to provide color depth.

How do I prune silver junipers or shrubs like Silver Buffaloberry for shape?

For Silver Buffaloberry, prune in late winter or early spring before new growth begins, removing dead or crossing branches and lightly shaping the outer canopy. Silver junipers like Moonglow respond best to selective pruning rather than shearing - trim individual branches back to lateral shoots in late spring after the growth flush. Both plants naturally develop attractive forms, so limit pruning to removing no more than one-third of the growth in a single season. Focus on maintaining the plant's natural silver foliage density rather than forcing unnatural shapes.