Oregon · Washington · Idaho
When to plant Oregon sunshine
Plant in the garden: Portland and Seattle Mar 1 – Apr 26; Spokane Apr 1 – May 27; Boise Mar 20 – May 15; Bend Apr 28 – Jun 23.
Your dates in
Oregon sunshine, also called woolly sunflower (Eriophyllum lanatum), is a native perennial in the daisy family that grows wild on dry, rocky ground on both sides of the Cascades. It stays about a foot tall and spreads into a silvery mound, a good fit for rock gardens, hellstrips and dry slopes that never get watered.
Puts Oregon sunshine on your free plan, with dates for your town and a spot in your beds.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Sun
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 12 to 18 inches apart
- Planting depth
- Same depth as in the pot; press seeds onto the surface in fall
- Frost
- Hardy perennial; comes back every year
- First harvest
- Blooms in late spring and early summer
A low native with silvery, woolly leaves and bright yellow daisies in late spring and early summer. It loves full sun, poor soil and dry summers, and rots in rich, wet beds.
Oregon sunshine planting dates
| Towns | Plant in the garden |
|---|---|
| Portland, OR, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Bend and Redmond, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
| Astoria, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
Dates for six main cities. For any of the other 80 towns, type it in the box at the top of the page or browse all towns.
| Gresham, OR, Oregon City and West Linn, OR, Portland, OR, St. Helens and Scappoose, OR, Wilsonville and Canby, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Hillsboro and Beaverton, OR | Mar 5 – Apr 30 |
| Corvallis and Albany, OR, Eugene, OR, Salem, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Cottage Grove, OR | Mar 13 – May 8 |
| McMinnville and Newberg, OR | Mar 4 – Apr 29 |
| Ashland and Talent, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Grants Pass, OR, Medford, OR, Roseburg, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Astoria, OR, Brookings and Gold Beach, OR, Coos Bay and North Bend, OR, Newport and Lincoln City, OR, Tillamook, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|
| Bend and Redmond, OR, Klamath Falls, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
|---|---|
| Burns, OR | Apr 30 – Jun 25 |
| Lakeview, OR | Apr 23 – Jun 18 |
| Madras, OR, Prineville, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
| Baker City, OR, Enterprise and Joseph, OR, John Day, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
|---|---|
| Hermiston, OR, Hood River, OR, Ontario, OR, Pendleton, OR, The Dalles, OR | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| La Grande, OR | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Bremerton and Port Orchard, WA, Everett, WA, Kent, Renton and Auburn, WA, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Olympia, WA | Mar 18 – May 13 |
| Shelton, WA | Mar 16 – May 11 |
| Anacortes, WA, Bellingham, WA, Friday Harbor and the San Juans, WA, Mount Vernon and Burlington, WA, Oak Harbor and Whidbey Island, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|
| Aberdeen and Hoquiam, WA, Forks, WA, Long Beach and Ilwaco, WA | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Port Angeles, WA, Port Townsend, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Sequim, WA | Mar 10 – May 5 |
| Centralia and Chehalis, WA | Mar 11 – May 6 |
|---|---|
| Longview and Kelso, WA, Vancouver, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Chelan, WA, Wenatchee, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Leavenworth, WA, Omak and Okanogan, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Winthrop and Twisp, WA | Apr 3 – May 29 |
| Ellensburg, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Ephrata and Quincy, WA, Moses Lake, WA, Sunnyside, Grandview and Prosser, WA, Tri-Cities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland), WA, Walla Walla, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Goldendale, WA | Apr 7 – Jun 2 |
| Yakima, WA | Mar 27 – May 22 |
| Colville, WA, Pullman, WA, Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|
| Bonners Ferry, ID, Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, ID, Sandpoint, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|
| Lewiston, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Moscow, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID, Emmett, ID, Nampa and Caldwell, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| McCall, ID | May 11 – Jul 6 |
| Burley and Rupert, ID, Idaho Falls, ID, Pocatello, ID, Rexburg, ID, Twin Falls, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Salmon, ID | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
Oregon sunshine year at a glance
| Task | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant | Mar | Apr | ||||||||||
| In bloom | May | Jun | Jul |
Around Portland. Colder towns, especially east of the Cascades, run a few weeks later; the table above has your town's planting dates.
How to grow Oregon sunshine
- Pick the sunniest, driest spot you have, with lean, gravelly soil. Don't add compost.
- Plant Oregon sunshine plants on your city's dates, 12 to 18 inches apart. Same depth as in the pot; press seeds onto the surface in fall.
- Water only during the first summer. Plants are short-lived but reseed in open, gravelly ground.
- Harvest: Enjoy the flowers in the garden. Shear plants lightly after bloom to keep them tidy and compact.
Growing Oregon sunshine in your part of the Northwest
The same plant behaves differently on the wet west side, the foggy coast and the dry, colder east side.
West-side valleys
Willamette Valley, Puget Sound, southern Oregon
Oregon sunshine wants full sun and very well-drained soil; it rots in wet winter clay.
East of the Cascades
Columbia Basin, Yakima, Boise, Spokane, north Idaho
Oregon sunshine grows wild on dry, sunny east-side slopes and needs little or no summer water.
More Oregon sunshine varieties
More widely sold picks that do well somewhere in the Northwest. The tag says which part of the Northwest suits each one best.
Oregon sunshine
Sold as plants and seed by native plant nurseries. Silvery leaves and yellow daisies for dry, sunny spots.
Both sides
How much to grow
How many to plant
Plant 3 or more, 1 to 2 feet apart, for a patch of gray leaves and yellow flowers.
Key numbers
- Both sidesNative range
- May–JulyBloom
- 1–2 ftHeight
- Very little once establishedWater
Top care tip: Don't water it after the first summer; dry soil keeps it alive.
Growing notes
What makes the difference in Northwest gardens, in plain language.
A dry-garden native
Oregon sunshine, also called woolly sunflower, is a low perennial with silvery-gray, woolly leaves and bright yellow daisies from late spring into summer. It grows wild on dry, rocky slopes, roadsides and grasslands on both sides of the Cascades.
Native bees and butterflies visit the flowers, and the silver leaves look good all season.
Planting
Plant in the sunniest, driest spot you have, in lean, gravelly or sandy soil that drains fast. Don't add compost or fertilizer.
Seed sown on the soil surface in fall germinates after a winter of cold, wet weather. Young plants can go in during spring or fall.
Care
Water only during the first summer. After that, summer watering and rich soil are what kill it.
Shear plants lightly after bloom to keep them compact. Individual plants are short-lived, but they reseed in open, gravelly ground.
Good neighbors
Grows well with
- Kinnikinnick. The same dry, sunny, lean soil.
- Lavender. Not native, but loves the same hot, dry spot.
Pests and problems
What most often goes wrong with Oregon sunshine in Northwest gardens, how to spot it and what to do.
Root rot
Signs: Plants die in rich or wet soil, or with summer watering.
What to do: Plant in lean, gravelly soil and leave it dry in summer.
Leggy plants
Signs: Sprawling stems after bloom.
What to do: Shear lightly after flowering.
Common questions about growing Oregon sunshine
When should I plant Oregon sunshine in Oregon, Washington and Idaho?
Plant in the garden: Mar 1 – Apr 26 in Portland and Seattle, Apr 1 – May 27 in Spokane, Mar 20 – May 15 in Boise and Apr 28 – Jun 23 in Bend. Pick your town at the top of the page for your own dates.
Why did my Oregon sunshine die?
Usually too much water or soil that's too rich. It needs full sun, lean soil and dry summers.
Is Oregon sunshine a sunflower?
It's in the same daisy family, but it's a low perennial, not a tall annual sunflower.
Can I grow Oregon sunshine from seed?
Yes. Sow on the surface in fall so the seed gets a cold, wet winter before it sprouts.
See what else to plant in March or April.
Huckleberries
Oregon grape
Red-flowering currant
Serviceberry
Camas
Thimbleberry
Salmonberry
Salal
Kinnikinnick
Western columbine
Douglas aster
Pacific ninebark
Sword fern
Oregon iris