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Artemisia schmidtiana 'Silver Mound' |
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| | A silvery burst in April |
| Common name |
wormwood |
| Family |
asteraceae |
| Life cycle |
perennial (Z3-10) |
| Flowers |
insignificant |
| Size |
10" |
| Light |
sun |
| Cultural notes |
well-drained soil |
A great silver-grey accent with lacy foliage that looks and feels soft as can be. They have not been the longest-lived perennials in our garden, maybe because they don't really care for the warm humid summers. We'll try a cutting-back and dividing regimen to keep our current ones alive, along with the position in the well-drained soil of our rock garden.
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This plant used to grow in our garden, but it slipped away... About my plant portraits
PlantLinks to other web pages about Artemisia schmidtiana 'Silver Mound'
Visitors to this page have left the following comments| judy | Jul 09, 2008 | Is wormwood a herb? Is it used for anything except for its foliage?
I have one on its second year. How long did yours last? mine came back much bigger. hope to keep it going.
Your page is great. I was looking for a picture because I could not remember the common name.
Generically, wormwood is an herb - but A. schmidtiana isn't used for anything but ornament, to the best of my knowledge. Other artemisias have utilitarian purposes, although I've not used them that way. |
| rlichon | Aug 09, 2008 | how do I cut them back for the winter?
I wouldn't cut all the way back - some artemisias are semi-woody, and will resprout from the bottom of last year's stems. But you can certainly cut down to about 3" in late fall. |
| p mccartan | Sep 15, 2008 | Is cutting back artemesia a good practice in Canada. We live in Southern Ontario.
I think so - cutting back the soft foliage may reduce the probability of rotting in wet winter weather. |
| D | Sep 15, 2008 | can I transplant these plants to another garden to another part of my yard?
I did not know that they are ground cover.
Help!!!!!
Silver mound artemisia stays low, but I wouldn't consider it a ground cover, since it doesn't spread. You can transplant it to a different place in your garden, but I would not do so too late in the year. Right about now would be fine. |
| KM | Sep 21, 2008 | I now understand that I should trim these plants and trim them for the winter but can I split them?
In my experience they grow from a single semi-woody stem - I would not know how to split them. |
| Joann Daley | Oct 03, 2008 | how far do you cut back a silver mound?
I cut away all of the soft growth, leaving just a small woody skeleton. |
| T. Fleming | Oct 13, 2008 | I have 2 artemisias, powis castle and silver mound, and I live in new york city. My two are in pots, (don't have a garden) and I wanted to know if they should go indoors for the winter or not.
They are quite hardy - should easily be able to overwinter in NYC, even in a pot. Protect from excessive moisture (make sure the pot drains, or place under cover), and they should be back just fine next year. |
| Phyllis | Apr 08, 2009 | I live in the Dallas Ft Worth area. I planted a powis Castle last year in the summer. It was doing really well until the winter. It had grown busy but is now quite leggy. Will it get back fuller and if not how can I make it grow back busy? It is nothing left by a little of the greenery.
It may behave differently in warmer climates, but here the artimisia dies back to a woody framework in winter. I cut it back to just a stubby skeleton in early spring. New growth comes in quickly from the bottom part of the old stems. |
| sailor | May 05, 2009 | Has anyone had problem with deer or rabbits with the beauty?? |
| Shi | May 14, 2009 | Is there a way to dwarf a silver mound? Like, keep it in a pot as a house plant, and continually cutting back the roots like bonsai?
These artemisias prefer full sun, and most likely won't grow very well in any kind of house-plant setting. Outside, they can be trimmed back - in fact I think they prefer it, and will respond with more compact, fuller growth. |
| Patricia | Jun 10, 2009 | I am wanting to put this plant in a very large tank with Asian flying frogs. Do you know if it is toxic to animals? I have read that birds and bees like it but that rabbits and deers stay away...do not want to hurt/kill frogs!
I've no reason to believe it would be toxic (it's probably just unappetizing to deer) - but then, I've never tried to raise Asian flying frogs! |
| karen Copeland | Jun 24, 2009 | My cat loves to roll in it and chew on it! Is it OK for cats? |
| Alfred Alexander | Jun 25, 2009 | I have had some luck with cuttings Take a long stem,use a rooting compound
put in moist potting soil |
| Heidi | Jun 30, 2009 | We have silver mounds in our front garden, but they are getting very large and growing into the flowers and bushes. Can we trim back the foliage a bit, or will this harm the plant? Thanks!
Trimming back the foliage should hurt the plant a bit. Go for it. |
| Karen | Jul 05, 2009 | I have 4 nursery purchased Artemisia schmidtiana. Do I have to plant them 3 feel from other perennials due to the scent that I've read may inhibit growth in the nearby perennials?
I've never heard that. This plant is commonly used in perennial borders, so I doubt any inhibiting effect is severe. |
| Cathy | Jul 09, 2009 | Mine got so big that I cut them way back. Too much, in fact, as now I have just woody stems. Will they regrow this season, will they come back next year?
There's a good probability they'll regrow - they certainly do when cut back hard in early spring, a summertime cutback will be somewhat harder on them. |
| Betty Faler | Aug 25, 2009 | I have 3 silver mound artemisia & they have grown much more than I anticipated. Right now, they are starting to blossom.(I didn't know they would blossom.)I think it is too late in the season to cut back now. Am I correct? If so, I will wait 'til later this fall. What time of year should one cut them back to keep them a smaller mound? (They are sprawled all over the place & crowding out my other plants.)
You can cut back to some extent right now (I would not cut back too hard, but snipping blooms off and trimming excess foliage should be fine). Then cut back harder in preparation for winter. |
| cathy b | Aug 25, 2009 | I did not know you should cut back in early summer; mine have spread in the middle-no defined mound now. Should I cut back in fall or are they ruined now?
You should be able to cut back now to improve its look - and it should be fine for next year. |
| Rita | Aug 27, 2009 | i would like to cut this in half as it is gotten very big and round, growing into some of the other plants I have. Can I cut this back and take part of this and plant it in another garden? When is the best time to do this.?
If it's like the specimens I've grown, it cannot be easily divided, growing from a central woody stem. I recommend cutting it back for now, to reduce smothering of your other plants, and giving it a better place next spring. |
| Kris Kody | Aug 30, 2009 | I have several that seem to have some sort of rot or fungus in the center which has split out the middle (and make these beauties quite ugly looking). It has been an awfully rainy spring and summer in New England. Is there anything I can do for them? I have others that are just gorgeous. Am I correct in assuming that it is likely due to differing soil conditions and drainage patterns? Any action I can take? Do they transplant well? |
| deb in michigan | Sep 20, 2009 | our silver mounds have gone crazy and have overtaken our beds and the blue grass time for haircuts |
| brenda jO | Oct 05, 2009 | I am brand new to planting ..plants! And one I picked is silvermound. I live in SD, it just started snowin', and I wonder if you could give me some advice on my newly planted one so that it might survive the winter! Any hints would be soo great!! Thankyou
If it's already planted, it should be OK. The soil is still warm enough for some root development. Cut the top growth back when cold temperatures kill the foliage, and make sure the plant doesn't get waterlogged in winter. That's about as much as you can do - I wouldn't go overboard on mulching or other protective measures, although a little bit of mulch after the ground freezes may be useful if frost heaving is a problem where you live. |
| S in Bonney Lake, Wa | Oct 14, 2009 | We have the Silver Mound Artemisia, and it is new to us this year. I have to say that it is the softest fluffiest most beautiful silvery foliage I have ever seen. (Much more silvery than the above picture would indicate.) We have it in a partly sunny area and the soil is surely quite naturally acidic because we have cedar, fir and hemlock trees all within about 30 feet on all sides. Lots of natural mulch from the trees. I don't know if that affects the color of the foliage. Do you know the answer to that?
I think the "silveriness" is all in the quality of light. It shimmers most in the sunshine, when it's hard to take photos - so the pictures on this page are all taken in softer light. |
| S in Lenexa | May 18, 2010 | You are incorrect, you can divide these plants and you can take cuttings and make new plants.
Cuttings, sure. But I don't believe it's possible to divide it - at least ours has always grown from a central woody stem. |
| Debra Oster | Jul 02, 2010 | How do I keep birds from destroying my silver mound plants? They have ruined two of them now picking them apart to make nests!!!
Wow, that's a problem I haven't encountered. You must have very special birds. Maybe the solution is to plant more of them, so the birds can have their fill and none of the plants will be completely picked over? |
| Melissa Havea | Jul 15, 2010 | My husband is Tongan and they use this plant in a liquid form. They just grow it in their yards, cut off what they want and boil it. My husband uses it as medicine it seems to slim him down when he does use it. |
| Sheila | Aug 29, 2010 | I just came in from moving my silvermounds, and yes they divide very easily, in fact they just fell apart, I carefully examined the rootball and there wasn't any damage done. |
| Tarn | Sep 02, 2010 | My cat loves to roll in our silver mound too! It kind of smells like patchouli or cedar when you rub your fingers against the leaves. I guess there's something in the volatile oils that they like. My cat hasn't eaten any leaves yet, but I'm hoping her rolling about doesn't destroy the plant! |
| Hannah | Oct 20, 2010 | I wanted to know it if was poisonous, because i have four tortoises and i wanted to plant it in their enclosure. This didn't really help. Does anyone know if tortoises can eat it? |
| Dela In Ohio | May 26, 2011 | Hi! Thanks so much for all the helpful information. How do I make new starts out of this plant?
I'm still trying to find out myself how to propagate this type of artemisia. Any helpful hints would be appreciated... |
| Bev In Alberta | Jun 14, 2011 | My silver mound got large and unattractive. I dug it out and sub divided into 3 by cutting it apart and replanted each piece separately. First year it was a little lazy but it is now growing well and is not sprawled out all over. It was about 5 years old when I did this. |
| Gardener Ted | Aug 08, 2011 | 10"!!! How about almost 20" tall and a spread of nearly three feet. This is in its second year. It has, until this past week, kept its mounded form, but has fallen a little bit. I did not pinch it back at all this year, but I will definitely do that next year. We have had an extraordinary summer, very hot and dry and I feed regularly with Miracle Grow. Thanks for the great forum! I found it extremely helpful!
Thanks for sharing your experience, Ted. |
| kathy | Aug 22, 2011 | hi. mine was growing well...but it has started to rot in the middle? turning black and limp. i read that it can rot in high humidity. i live in cleveland and we have had a lot of rain this year...as did alot of other places!
Yep, it will do that when it gets soggy. Which is why we never manage to keep ours alive for more than a year or two. |
| Diane Minnesota | Sep 08, 2011 | I have 2 silver mound plants. The first year they almost died. So I replanted them and the seond year they came up nice. But this year, they have fallen in a circle but the middle is brown and some of the ends are a light pink color. Is there anyway to correct this or do something to get the silver mound back to a mound and all silver? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
For the remainder of this year, your plants most likely won't improve their appearance. For winter protection, you might want to cut them back somewhat (but not too hard) to avoid the foliage trapping moisture through the winter. |
| Diane - Minnesota | Oct 14, 2011 | I just wanted to thank you so much for your advice and what to do for winter. I would have put a couple of inches of mulched leaves on them. I am going to follow your advice. I am so glad your website is here, because I could not find an answer. Also, you picture was the only one that was good enough for me to determine what my 2 plants were. I really appreciate your web site and your advide. Thank you!! |
| Nancy - Waxahachie, Texas | Oct 19, 2011 | I planted a small Silver Mound Artemesia in early spring. After going through one of the most severe droughts Texas has seen in a long time, the plan thrives and is now an oval mound of five X three feet, about two feet tall. NOTHING has been done to promote its growth except weekly watering. Now I shall try to nurse it through the winter and watch it thrive again next year. What a joy in the garden! |
| Curt | Apr 19, 2012 | Just bought 3 of the beautiful Artemesia schmidtiana & nursery said it should be dried out when wet. We live in the rainiest city (Hilo, HI.) in the USA getting over 120" annually. Seems the only solution is to keep them in pots & remove to dry out when wet, which has become a hassle. Any other ideas? Mahalo!
I think they'll be fine if planted in pots with a free-draining (gritty) soil mix. They don't need to actually dry out, they just can't stand having their roots soppy wet for very long. Good luck! |
| Deloris | Jun 05, 2012 | is there a place that I can buy seeds for silver mound ?, or is it only propagated by cuttings?
I've never seen seeds offered, for sale or in trade, for these. |
| Lotus | Apr 11, 2013 | One of your earlier posters mentioned they were getting 'blooms' on their plant. What color blooms would these be ? I just purchased this silvery plant for my Moonlit Garden (which is all white flowers & silver leafed plants).
Little white things. |
| Laura | Jul 18, 2013 | We planted two silver mounds last year and they grew so much bigger and fuller this year. I was so excited because I absolutely LOVE them! Unfortunately, a child in our extended family stomped on the one right next to our front entryway! Now it's more like a half donut and probably 1/3-1/4 the size. It looks awful and makes me so sad. Is there anything I can do to help it recover? Or will it even recover?
Sure, it will recover. But it may not look particularly nice for the remainder of the season. Give it a haircut, and see how it does. |
| Rebecca | Aug 01, 2013 | Hello, I'd really like to have an Artemisia in my (sunny)office at work. Do you know which, if any, of them will tolerate being inside? Thanks!
I don't know. It's worth a try, just select a dwarf variety and make sure not to overwater or fertilize, with as much sun as you can muster. |
| Karen - Illinois | Sep 07, 2013 | Wormwood is used to make the drink Absinthe, I'm not sure I would let my cat or any other pet roll around in it. http://www.absinthefever.com/wormwood
http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-729-WORMWOOD.aspx?activeIngredientId=729&activeIngredientName=WORMWOOD
If it gets too tall and starts to split, I just pull the whole plant up together at the top and trim it a little at a time. I keep trimming until it is back into a nice ball shape. |
| Barbara | Sep 10, 2013 | I have two silver mound plants. One is hugh probably 4 ft across or better and 4 years old. The other I have to reshape it has lost it's roundness. But my question is how to I take cuttings to make other plants? Should I cut back to the woody stem or before? I am using a rooting agent. Should the soil be kept damp or let it dry out? I have tried several times with little or no results. Thank you for your assistance.
I'm not an expert at rooting plants. In fact, I have tried unsuccessfully to root artemisia myself. Hopefully, somebody with pertinent experience will come along with solid advice. |
| maureen black | May 25, 2014 | Thank you for your helpful hints. I have a planter box 2'W x 20' long. It is very expensive to plant annuals and it gets sun all day. I have a hard time growing anything there. I have had silver mound in my other homes and love the feel and look so I have planted a few of them there. Also there is no water supply back there so I have to haul it by hand so these plants are great in that spot. I will try to get some cutting and see if I can root some. |
| JoAnn in Ohio | Jun 27, 2014 | I just planted three Silver Mound but now a week later, I find the plants surrounded by small branchlets from the main plant as though something is nipping off pieces. The plants are looking very sorry. Wondered about the bird problem mentioned but it doesn't look like many of the pieces are being carried away. |
| Rebecca | Sep 01, 2015 | I have a 4x6 garden under a tree in front of my house. I have lots of different plants growing here & this summer I planted 2 silver mound plants. They are going crazy!They've tripled in size!!! So...how do I trim them back for the fall/winter? I usually trim everything back pretty low then cover with mulch. I'm getting different suggestions and want to make sure I don't trim them back too far that they never sprout next year!
You may want to ignore my advice, since I've killed off a few silver mounds... But here goes. Artemisias are woody; new growth in spring returns from last year's woody stems. So trimming all the way back may not be the way to go. On the other hand, you want to avoid having the big floppy top growth turn into a soppy mess and cause rot in the winter. So I'd cut back most of the way, but leave a healthy amount (perhaps 3 inches) of growth standing. I would not cover them with a winter mulch. |
| Laura | May 20, 2016 | What could have taken my silver mound? I planted a silver mound and a few other perennials earlier this week, placed protective cages around each of them to keep the squirrels out until they become firmly established. This afternoon, I noticed the silver mound is completely gone! We've had a lot of rain lately, so I imagine it was easy to pull out. Any ideas. FYI, we have squirrels, birds, including ravens or crows, and raccoons that frequent our fenced in backyard.
Well, that just bites. I have no idea what would have taken it. As far as I know, artemisias aren't all that high on the desirable list for most munching critters. |
| Kathy | May 26, 2016 | I'm trying to find the name of plant which is very similar to silver mound. it is same mound shape with feathery leaves. The name is something like lemon globe-I'm pretty sure globe is in the name. It is bright lemon/lime color.
Going out on a limb here, but how about Santolina 'Lemon Queen'? |
| kirsta | May 30, 2016 | I've got 2 silver mounds in separate pots under our porch. They both get partial to full sun. One of them looks sad & wilty! So i think that i've over watered it!! Will it ever come back to it's beautiful roundness? ...were going on day 4 of sadness! :(
I can't diagnose the problem from out here - I just hope your plant is doing better by now. |
| Ly | Mar 31, 2018 | is this extremely toxic?
Some artemisias are toxic, or psycho-active. I have no idea if this one is – I doubt it's a serious concern, but I certainly wouldn't eat it. |
| Thy | Sep 04, 2018 | We have 3 Silver Mounds in our front yard where they're thriving. However, we noticed a sticky covering on them, like sap. We also noticed flies (like house flies) ALL OVER THEM, perhaps even attracted to the sap? What is happening here? I searched all over the internet for Silver Mound, sap, sticky, etc. Nothing. Have you ever heard of this? Thanks so much!
That's not something I remember seeing. Artemisias aren't sticky-sappy in my experience, so I'm at a loss at to what's going on with yours. |
| Penny | Oct 08, 2018 | I have several growths of spreading Artemisia. it is Oct. lows at 46 for a few more weeks (zone 9/ Central California) I would like to transplant several of these to a sunny hill area. Is it too late in the fall to transplant these?
Not at all. Now is perfect – just enough time for roots to re-establish before your (mild) freezes come around. I suspect you could transplant anytime in late fall or winter and be fine, but October is certainly safe. |
| Vince | May 14, 2019 | I have several black lace elderberry bushes and put some silver mounding plants around one of them because the foliage looked pretty together. But that elderberry bush won’t grow now. It even struggles to keep leaves. Could the silver mound be toxic to the bush?
It's possible, but I've never heard of artemisias exuding toxins through their roots, and haven't had any such experiences myself. Perhaps the root disturbance from digging in the artemisias caused a setback to the elderberry? In my experience those shrubs are tough as nails, I'm surprised at the experience you describe... |
| Suzette | Aug 26, 2019 | Thy! My Artemisia is covered with flies this summer too. I have never seen flies attracted to them before. This year there a dozens and dozens on the plants here in St. Louis. |
| Sharon | Oct 01, 2020 | Reading your site. Very good. But I live in northern Alberta Canada (grande prairie Alberta)
I have two beautiful silver mounds. I read you said moving them now is ok. But that was a question in mid August. It’s now October 2. I’m I two late. We are getting the occasional freeze overnight but our days are mid- high teens.
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