New to our garden this year ‘Powis Castle’ artemisia is proving to be a powerful perennial plant for foliage! I’ve always enjoyed artemisias for the silver foliage and really liked the ‘Silver Mound’ artemisia that we put in the front sidewalk garden so once I found this cultivar at a local nursery I thought I would give it a try. It has already spread to about 3 feet wide in its first season in the ground. ‘Powis Castle’ is more stout than tall. It may be 18-24″ tall right now and might get up to 3 feet tall.
It’s nestled into our birdbath garden next to some ‘Mystic Spires’ Salvia. Then again nestled probably isn’t the right word, it’s taking over its location and almost crowding out the salvia. Truthfully I don’t mind if it takes over because it looks really cool. A little planting advice: give it some space!And with the morning sunlight reflecting off the morning dew the silvery foliage almost appears to be frost.
The Details on Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’:
‘Powis Castle’ Artemisia is a great perennial for zones 6-8 and likes a full sun location but can take partial shade. It can grow up to 3 feet tall with a diameter of 3-6 feet. Very impressive! Its flowers are insignificant and won’t produce viable seed that will be true to the parent plant. All new plants of ‘Powis Castle’ come from cuttings. If your choice is pruning in the fall or spring, prune in the spring just before new growth occurs. With many perennials the foliage helps to protect the plant from frosts. According to Floridata it is believed to be been a hybrid between Artemisia arborescens and Artemisia absinthium.
Ah Dave I think you must be a convert to Powis Castle now. One of my favorite perennials! I have found cuttings in the fall work best, but really you can dig up plants as they root along the stem with less trouble. One thing, if you do not want it to spread far and wide by growing out, make sure to cut it back hard in the early spring. My clumps stay about 3 feet around here, though in the shade they are a bit smaller, but still dense. This is a great deer resistant plant and one that ties all other plants together in my humble opinion. It looks great in your birdbath garden and I can see where it will make a big impact.
This is an interesting plant.
Artemisia is one of my favorites, but some varieties do tend to wonder.
I also like 'Silver Mound', it's very interesting for color and texture in the garden!