Simcoe County Master Gardeners
Grow Natives!
PLANT PROFILE
COMMON NAME: Silverweed
BINOMIAL: Argentina anserina
| Family | Rosaceae |
| Cdn Native Range | all provinces and territories |
| Natural habitat | open woodlands, roadsides, clear cut areas, waste areas, abandoned fields, disturbed sites, sandy dunes, beaches, wetlands |
| Type | herb and groundcover |
| Features | flowers are long lasting yellow rosettes with attractive compound leaves; underside foliage is silver and hairy with sharp toothed leaf edges |
| Growth habit | low mat-forming |
| Mature height | 10 – 20 cm (4” to 8”) |
| Mature spread | 60 – 150 cm (2’ to 5’) |
| Life span | 2 – 3 growing seasons but root system persists and spreads via runners (stolons) |
| Cdn Hardiness Zone | 4 – 9 |
| Growing conditions | full sun/part sun |
| Soil conditions | tolerates very poor soil conditions |
| Watering needs | high moisture |
| Fertilizer needs | none |
| Tolerance | drought, once established, salt, stream margins |
| Maintenance rank | minimal |
| Maintenance needs | pest and disease free |
| Bloom | long blooming from May to September |
| Fruit | edible and medicinal plant; root tastes like parsnip or sweet potato |
| Pollinator support | larval host to tinagma moth, green clover worm, allen’s tortrix moth, strawberry leafroller, sparganothis moth and lucerne pests like aphids, mites, weevils and other caterpillars |
| Environmental support | provide nectar for butterflies, bees, insect pollinators and native moths |
| Garden Use | rock gardens, pollinator gardens, sunny rain gardens, and drought tolerant areas; mass plantings; erosion control; hedging |
| Risks & Cautions | spreads rapidly by red stolons |
References: Louise Johnson and Sheila Colla, A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee; Gardenia Creative Gardens
