How to Grow and Care for Mule's ears

Narrowleaf Mule Ears (Wyethia angustifolia) is a perennial herbaceous plant that will grow to 91 cm tall. Native to western North America it is a member of the sunflower family and produces large yellow flowers with golden centers. Blooms from spring to summer attracting insects bees and butterflies. It is winter deciduous. Prefers full sun and well-drained soil.

Woolly Mule's Ears (Wyethia mollis) is a perennial herb in the sunflower family that grows in the Sierra Nevada mountains in the western United States. The plant is native to California and very nearby surrounding areas. Blooms in late spring with large yellow flowers. Leaves are whitish-gray and deciduous in winter. Large hairy leaves look like mule’s ears, giving it its name.

It is a perennial herb growing from a tough taproot and caudex unit and producing a stem up to 40 cm tall. The leaves have lance-shaped or oval blades up to 45 cm long. The inflorescence is usually a solitary flower head or occasionally a cluster of 2 or more.

Wyethia helenioides is a short, low growing golden-rayed wildflower, that resemble sunflowers. Typical understory associates in sunny clearings of mixed oak forests in coastal California include Mimulus aurantiacus and Calochortus luteus.

Arizona mule-ears is a resilient perennial herb often found in the sandy soils of Arizona’s high deserts. Its showy yellow flowers, which bloom from May to July, sit atop stout stems, juxtaposed with broad, lance-shaped leaves. The plant thrives in open, sunny spots, masterfully adapting to the arid climate by storing water within its deep taproot system.