Pearly everlasting
Anaphalis margaritacea · Asteraceae
Clusters of papery white, yellow-eyed buttons over silver-grey leaves from late summer. The flowers dry on the plant and last for months.
- Size
- 24 in tall, 18 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 8
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Late July to early September
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around pearly everlasting
The planner designed this bed around pearly everlasting when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) naturalistic planting in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why pearly everlasting stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Pearly everlasting × 3, white
- 2 Winter heath × 12, pink
- 3 Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips' × 8, blue
- 4 False sunflower 'Summer Nights' × 3, yellow
- 5 Little bluestem 'The Blues' × 5, tan
- 6 Silver sage × 1, silver leaves
- 7 Ornamental onion 'Purple Sensation' × 5, purple
- 8 Surprise lily × 3, pink
Why this plant
- The only dense clusters. The others are bells, open bowls, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- The only white. White sits between stronger colours and calms them.
Why here
- At the back. At 24 in it is seen over winter heath (10 in) in front of it, and has nothing behind it to hide.
- A step in the back row. Next to false sunflower 'Summer Nights' (3½ ft), ornamental onion 'Purple Sensation' (2½ ft) and little bluestem 'The Blues' (3 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- 3 plants in one group. Massed, one kind reads as a single shape. Scattered, it would look spotty.
Why now
- In flower for 7 weeks. From late July to early September.
- Part of the bed's peak. With Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips', false sunflower 'Summer Nights', little bluestem 'The Blues' and others in early August: 5 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as a naturalistic planting: low grasses and groundcovers, the matrix, make up 56% of the planted ground. The back corners are held by false sunflower 'Summer Nights' and little bluestem 'The Blues', the tallest plants on the plan. Winter heath repeats along the bed to tie it together.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 4 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where pearly everlasting goes in a border
At 24 in it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium short (18 to 24 in).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
Most silver plants demand dry soil; this one does not, so it brings silver to ordinary borders. It spreads into a patch, which suits the informal look of its flowers.
- Silver foliage that tolerates more moisture than most
- Dried flowers
- A host plant for painted lady butterflies
What to plant with pearly everlasting
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- New England aster: tall enough (4 ft) to stand behind it.
- Black-eyed Susan: in flower together for seven weeks, from late July.
- Sedum 'Autumn Joy': in flower together for four weeks, from mid August; bold leaves against its fine ones.
Questions about pearly everlasting
Does pearly everlasting need sun or shade?
Pearly everlasting grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and little watering once settled. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does pearly everlasting grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 8. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does pearly everlasting flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late July to early September. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 3 | Early August to early September |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Early August to early September |
| Zone 5 | Late July to early September |
| Zone 6 | Late July to early September |
| Zone 7 | Mid July to early September |
| Zone 8 | Mid July to early September |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should pearly everlasting be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is about its full width, so each plant keeps its own outline.
It grows 24 in (60 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many pearly everlasting plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as a group of three or five, with a second group further along in the other number.
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Is pearly everlasting poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat pearly everlasting?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to rabbits. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
Will pearly everlasting spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads by underground runners and can crowd its neighbours. Dig out the edges or divide every 2 to 3 years.
What flowers after pearly everlasting?
Pearly everlasting is over by early September. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- New England aster: from early September to mid October, 4 ft tall (a recorded partner).
- Garden chrysanthemum: from mid September to late October, 24 in tall.
- Bottle gentian: from late August to early October, 20 in tall.
What does pearly everlasting look like in winter?
Pearly everlasting dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
Is pearly everlasting good for bees and butterflies?
Pearly everlasting is visited by bees and butterflies.
It is native to the United States and Canada.
In these guides
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Drought-tolerant perennials for full sun
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Native perennials for pollinators
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants for bees
- Plants for a white garden
- Silver and grey-leaved plants
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 24 in (60 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium short (18 to 24 in)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Late July to early September; dense clusters; white
- Leaves
- Fine texture, herbaceous; silver
- Shape
- Upright, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 8
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Comes from
- North America, Europe, Asia
- Attracts
- Bees, butterflies
- Stands up to
- Rabbits, drought
Checked against NC State Extension and VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.