Harvest Lambs Ear seeds for a seed exchange with friends and beautiful gardens everywhere – learn how easy it is to collect and store seeds.

Let me just put it out there, right from the top. I LOVE Lambs Ear!!!

It’s such a soft, tolerant, and easy plant. These words—soft, tolerant, and easy—aren’t prevalent enough in our current world, so I’m thrilled to have them in my garden.

Lambs Ear is recognized by its gorgeous silvery sage color and its super soft, fuzzy leaves. Children, in particular, love those soft leaves. Bonus: the leaves dry beautifully retaining their color and soft texture.

It’s often used as ground cover, in rock gardens and cottage gardens, and along edging, softening the hard borders. Basically, it works just about anywhere in your gardening.

Harvesting lambs ear seeds is a simple process that rewards gardeners with a bountiful supply of this versatile plant.

Lambs Ear, a beloved garden staple, boasts a rich history dating back to medieval times in the Middle East. Initially cultivated for its medicinal properties, its soft, velvety leaves were used to soothe sore throats, reduce inflammation, and even serve as antiseptic wound dressings.

During the Civil War, these leaves were employed as natural bandages, earning the plant the nicknames “Nature’s Band-Aids” and “Mother Nature’s toilet paper.”   

While its historical uses are fascinating, I personally adore Lambs Ear for its aesthetic appeal and low-maintenance nature. 

The velvety foliage, a silvery-gray hue, repels deer, adds a unique texture and color to my garden. And let’s not forget its remarkable resilience—it’s one of the most reliable and tolerant plants in my collection.  

Lambs Ear, their common name, is scientifically classified as Stachys byzantina or Stachys lanata. Its botanical name hints at its origins in the Byzantine Empire.

I love it in my garden, plus I harvest the leaves to use in crafting! YES, you read the right. These leaves have become one of my favorite medium. Check out 13 charming decor items I made with Lambs Ear.

Lamb’s Ear, perennial plants thriving in USDA Hardiness Zones 4-9 (and occasionally 10), are popular plants celebrated for its silvery foliage. While it does produce small purple flowers that grow on tall flower spikes, these can sometimes be seen as a visual distraction from the plant’s striking leaves. To maintain a tidy appearance and prevent self-seeding, it’s easy to simply clip off the flower stalks as they emerge.

However, if you’re interested in harvesting seeds or attracting pollinators, leaving a few spikes in place is beneficial. Bees and other beneficial insects are drawn to the flowers, and the flower heads can be harvested for the seeds.

Lambs Ear prefers full sun but can tolerate partial shade. Its drought tolerance and preference for well-drained soil make it a low-maintenance addition to any garden. 

While there are various cultivars with slightly different dimensions, all Lambs Ear plants have a compact growth habit. Their dense, lush foliage effectively chokes out weeds, making them ideal for ground cover.

With little care, Lambs Ear requires only occasional cleaning out of dead foliage and division every three to four years. In milder climates, like my Zone 6b, it can maintain its green foliage year-round, especially when planted in sheltered locations.

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Harvesting the seeds is really very simple, with a few tricks to help.

All you need is clean plastic tub or bucket, paper towels, a sheet of clean paper and sharp garden clippers or snips.

Generally, Late Summer to Early Fall, depending on your USDA zone, is the best  time to harvest seeds.

Above, the flowers are faded, but the stalk is not dried out enough.

Above, this stalk is ready!

You want to catch the flower stalks when they are drying out — after all the small blooms have faded. Wait until they will feel brittle and slightly sharp.

If you wait too long, most of the seeds will have scattered out on their own. So keep an eye on those stalks.

Once you’ve identified the mature stalks, Cut the dried stalks and gently place in your tub or bucket.

To prevent seeds from being blown away, harvest the seeds from the flower stalks indoors.

To separate the seeds from the stalk, I line a plastic tub, a 4-sided cookie sheet or a 9 x 13 baking dish with a single layer of paper towels.

Over this container, gently run your fingertips along the flower spike, dislodging the tiny, round, black seeds from the pockets where the petals once were. The seeds will accumulate on the paper towels.

Some chaff and other organic material will fall in with the seeds. No worry, I’ve got a trick for that.

PRO TIP: Once you are done collecting seeds from the flower stalks, those dried stalks can be great filler in a Fall dried arrangement.

Now let’s separate the seeds from the chaff. This is where the paper towel works its magic versus a paper plate like many use.

Pick off any large pieces by hand. Then pick up the towel on opposite sides and slowly tilt it down like a funnel over a clean sheet of paper. The seeds will roll right off, but the chaff will stick to the texture of the paper towel. 

If some organic material still made its way into the seeds. Shake off your paper towel outside, and then repeat the process by pouring the contents of the paper onto the paper towel, spreading out all the material before lifting and slowly funneling it all onto the clean paper again. Repeat as necessary

Once you’ve successfully extracted the seeds, it’s time to store them for next year’s planting.

To ensure healthy, viable seeds for next spring, it’s essential to keep them dry and in a cool location. Always allow harvested seeds to air dry on a paper towel for a few days before storing.

Many use envelopes for storing their seeds. To me, envelopes are fine for short term storage, but they are not airtight for storing for 6 months. Small ziplock bags are another easy option. I prefer storing them in small glass jars with tight lids. 

If you are using a tall skinny bottle like I am, use some tape to hold it upright and steady. I placed mine inside the lid of a to-go box to collect any seeds that might miss the bottle.

Fold the paper with seeds in half and then carefully pour into your clean, dry jar, bottle or ziplock bags.

PRO TIP: For a moisture safeguard, I like to add a small packet of dried rice or a desiccant packet (those moisture wicking packets that come in so many product packages). 

Labeling-

Stating the obvious, don’t forget to label the seed variety and harvest date.

PRO TIP: An alcohol marker is great for labeling on glass, it’s smudge-free, but easily wipes clean with a dab of rubbing alcohol for future use.

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I know, that’s hard to believe. Want to see it in action? Here I shared hosting hacks using alcohol markers.

By following these simple steps, you can successfully store your Lambs Ear seeds to share with friends and enjoy a bountiful harvest next year.

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I hope I’ve convinced you to add Lambs Ear to your garden. 

This beautiful, low-maintenance perennial offers velvety leaves, a stunning silvery-sage color, and versatility in its use as ground cover, edging, or even in containers.

Beyond its garden appeal, Lambs Ear’s leaves have brought me countless crafting joy throughout the year. 

YES! It dries beautifully, retaining that signature color and soft, fuzzy texture.

While dividing is the easiest way to propagate Lambs Ear, seed exchanges offer a fun way to share this plant with gardening friends across the country. As you’ve seen, harvesting Lambs Ear seeds is a simple process.

My seeds are ready for sharing this coming Friday! Be sure to come back and explore the exciting seed exchanges a number of blogging friends have in store for you.