Other Names:  Bush Morning Glory, Shrubby Bindweed

Description:

A dense, mounding, evergreen shrub noted for attractive silver-green leaves and funnel shaped white flowers in late spring through summer; tolerates drought once established; a great addition to patio containers, rock gardens, beds and borders

Ornamental Features

Silverbush features showy lightly-scented white trumpet-shaped flowers with yellow throats at the ends of the branches from late spring to late summer, which emerge from distinctive pink flower buds. It has attractive grayish green foliage with hints of silver. The small fuzzy narrow leaves are highly ornamental and remain grayish green throughout the winter.

Landscape Attributes

Silverbush is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a mounded form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting bees, butterflies and hummingbirds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Silverbush is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting
• Hanging Baskets

Planting & Growing

Silverbush will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 3 feet. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. To help this plant achive its best flowering performance, periodically apply a flower-boosting fertilizer from early spring through into the active growing season. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This species is not originally from North America.

Silverbush makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor containers and hanging baskets. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.