Few container plants look good by the end of the summer especially when you live where high heat and humidity are the rule, but dichondra ‘Silver Falls’ is one that does. Start with a couple of small plants in the spring and it quickly grows into a thick and long mass of blue-gray foliage that can tone down the hot pink of impatients or complement the cool tones of ‘Crystal Palace’ lobelia. It grows well in sun, tolerates part sun, and can be grown as a ground cover as well as a cascading container plant. It needs no pinching or deadheading to thrive and spread. If you live in warm areas it will come back each year, otherwise it can be brought in side for the winter or grown easily from seed in the spring.
Type: Tender perennial usually grown as an annual
Bloom: Insignificant greenish yellow to white flowers May-June
Foliage: Silver gray fan-shaped leaves are ¾-1” long and wide and are borne on silvery stems.
Size: 2-3” H x 3-5’ W
Light: Prefers full sun with some afternoon shade in South but tolerates part sun.
Soil: Average, sandy loam, moist, well-drained; drought tolerant; rots in soggy soil.
Fertilizer: None needed
Hardiness: Zones 10-12
Care: Easy care
Pests and Diseases: None of significance
Propagation: Seed (easy), layering
Companion plants: Geranium, impatients, begonias, Lobelia ‘Crystal Palace’, dusty miller.
Karen Meyers