Lamb's Ear has a downy softness of the leaves. The plant can grow to two feet with a bloom as seen in the photo above. The flower is lavender and the leaves are silver to light green. It has been called wound wort because the leaves have been used to staunch wounds. It has also been used as a wash cloth. The plant likes full sun and likes to spread. In sensory gardens Lamb's Ear is often planted because of its downy softness illustrating touch.
One year my garden was on a city-wide garden walk. A blind woman was on the walk. When I saw her I immediately took her to the Lamb's Ear and asked her to touch it. She was surprised to feel the softness of the leaves. When I told her the name, Lamb's Ear, she thought it was aptly named.
At the opposite end of downy soft is the bristly or spiny margins of the Rattlesnake Master, Eryngium yuccifolium. This perennial is native to tall grass prairie. The leaves resemble yucca plants. The Native Americans used the root as an antidote for rattlesnake venom.
In between the downy softness of the Lamb's Ear and the bristly flower of the Rattlesnake Master is the fern. Ferns have fonds that are lace like soft to the touch. Maiden Hair fern is a favorite plant to have for the fine soft touch.
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