Lady's mantle
Plant it where you are happy for it to seed about: it establishes fast and colonises gently rather than staying where it is put.
Care
Sun to part shade — tolerates both, though the leaves stay fresher longer in some shade.
Medium — tolerant once established, but leaves scorch at the edges in prolonged drought.
Almost any soil that isn't waterlogged; unfussy about pH and happy on clay.
Shear the whole plant to the ground after flowering: it regrows a fresh mound of leaves within weeks and, just as important, stops it seeding everywhere.
Needs no feeding at all — it thrives in poor soil, in paving cracks and at the foot of walls. A compost mulch in spring is more than enough.
Divide the clump in spring — it splits easily and every piece takes. It also self-seeds enthusiastically, so the more common task is pulling out seedlings rather than raising them.
Month by month
Months change with the climate: in southern Italy tomatoes go out two months earlier than in England.
- AprilRemove any winter-damaged leaves as the new growth appears.
- JulyShear the whole plant to the ground after flowering for fresh foliage and to limit self-seeding. how ›
- SeptemberPull out unwanted seedlings while they are small and come up easily.
Months based on climate: UK. Your choice stays on this device.
- AprilRemove any winter-damaged leaves as the new growth appears.
- JulyShear the whole plant to the ground after flowering for fresh foliage and to limit self-seeding. how ›
- SeptemberPull out unwanted seedlings while they are small and come up easily.
Months based on climate: Northern Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
- MarchRemove any winter-damaged leaves as the new growth appears.
- JulyShear the whole plant to the ground after flowering for fresh foliage and to limit self-seeding. how ›
- SeptemberPull out unwanted seedlings while they are small and come up easily.
Months based on climate: Central Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
- MarchRemove any winter-damaged leaves as the new growth appears.
- JulyShear the whole plant to the ground after flowering for fresh foliage and to limit self-seeding. how ›
- OctoberPull out unwanted seedlings while they are small and come up easily.
Months based on climate: Southern Italy and islands. Your choice stays on this device.
Common problems
How to spot it. Seedlings appearing throughout the border and in paving.
What to do. Cut the plant back straight after flowering, before the seed ripens.
How to spot it. Brown, crisp edges in a dry summer.
What to do. Water in prolonged drought or move to part shade; cut back for fresh leaves.
How to spot it. Open, lax growth by midsummer.
What to do. Shear to the ground — regrowth is quick and tidy.
Popular varieties
Questions
Lady's mantle: is it hardy?
H7: Fully hardy anywhere in the UK. It survives below −20 °C.
Can it grow in a pot?
Yes, though it is at its best in the ground, softening a path edge or the base of a wall.
Lady's mantle: when do you prune it?
Shear the whole plant to the ground after flowering: it regrows a fresh mound of leaves within weeks and, just as important, stops it seeding everywhere. In the calendar for UK, pruning falls in July.
Lady's mantle: when does it flower?
In the climate of UK it flowers in June–July.
When do you feed it?
Needs no feeding at all — it thrives in poor soil, in paving cracks and at the foot of walls. A compost mulch in spring is more than enough.