How to Plant and Grow Yarrow

Yarrow is a classic garden perennial known for its ruggedness. It shrugs off cold winters, hot and humid summers, drought, and poor soils to cheerfully bloom in sunny places. With its tall stems of colorful flowers and fern-like foliage, it works especially well in a cottage garden setting and in wildflower gardens.

While yarrow is not currently classified as invasive by the USDA in any region, its growth habits are being closely watched1 as yarrow has a tendency to become weedy if not properly managed. Yarrow is considered toxic to dogs, cats, and horses,2 but reactions are rare because it produces a very bitter taste. Yarrow may also cause an allergic skin reaction3 when touched by those who are susceptible.

Where to Plant Yarrow

Yarrow is a low-maintenance and versatile perennial that is best suited for hardiness zones 3 to 9, but it can be grown with some success as far north as zone 2 and as far south as zone 10. It is perfect for borders, butterfly gardens, cottage gardens, and containers and will thrive in areas with full sun and well-drained soil.

How and When to Plant Yarrow

You can plant yarrow starts or cuttings directly in the ground in the spring or early summer after the last frost has passed. To plant a yarrow plant, dig a hole as deep as the plant’s nursery container and about twice as wide. Place the plant in the hole so that the root ball is even with the soil surface and fill in around the roots with soil. Water it thoroughly and continue to water it frequently until the yarrow plant is well-established.  Space multiple yarrow plants 1 to 2 feet apart.  

Yarrow Care Tips

Yarrow is extremely easy to grow and requires little maintenance to thrive. The cheerful, unfussy blooms are great for attracting pollinators and they don’t require fertilizer or an excess of water to bring bright flashes of color to your garden. Plus, with the right conditions, they can bloom all the way from early spring to late fall.

Light

Ideally, yarrow wants a garden spot with full sun where it can grow strong, supportive stems for its colorful flower heads. While it tolerates some shade, too much shade can cause leggy, floppy stems and could also lead to disease problems.

Soil and Water

Yarrow won’t do well in wet soils, so make sure to plant yours in well-drained soil. Once established, yarrow is highly drought tolerant, making it an excellent plant for low-maintenance, dry gardens and for xeriscaping.

Pruning

You can help your yarrow thrive by deadheading spent blooms to encourage new growth and prevent self-sowing.

Potting and Repotting

Yarrow is great for containers—especially since a container will curtail the plant’s tendency to spread. The best time to plant or transfer yarrow to pots is in early spring, which should give the plant enough time to establish itself before the summer heat.

Since some types of yarrow can grow quite tall, it’s best to use a large pot (at least 12 inches in diameter) with excellent drainage for container planting yarrow. Fill your pot with a well-draining potting mix that contains vermiculite or perlite and increase the pot size as the plant
grows to accommodate the growth (or divide the plant).  

You can take your potted yarrow inside over winter if you live in an area that suffers from especially chilly winters. If your pot stays outside during the winter months, just make sure it does not freeze, crack, or hold water.

Pests and Problems

Powdery mildew is common in older varieties of yarrow; luckily, it’s mostly a cosmetic problem, and plants will rarely die from it.

Some yarrows spread quite aggressively by underground rhizomes. These rhizomes can grow densely and create heavy mats of foliage and roots, which is helpful for weed suppression, but it can also choke out other plants you’re trying to grow in your garden. If you are hesitant about planting them because of this, look for less aggressive varieties, and place them where their spread can be more easily contained.

How to Propagate Yarrow

Yarrow grows aggressively and can self-seed if left unchecked. The downside of this (besides potentially crowding out other plants) is that new plants may not look the same as the parent plant since many nursery-grown yarrow plants are hybrids.

The best way to propagate your yarrow and get similar-looking new plants is through division. This will also curtail excess growth and keep your yarrow plants vibrant and healthy. Wait until the plant is done blooming and then loosen the soil around the plant’s root ball and dig it up. Use a sharp tool (like a trowel or spade) to cut the plant into two or three segments (make sure each segment has multiple shoots). Replant your divided yarrow (spaced 1 to 2 feet apart) at the same depth as the original plant and water until the soil is sufficiently moist.

If you want to grow yarrow from seed, start in early spring (about 8 to 10 weeks before the last frost) and sow the seeds in a tray on top of a starting mix. Press the seeds into the soil and water. Keep the tray in a warm, sunny spot and they will begin to germinate in about two weeks. Acclimate your seedlings by placing them outside for a little bit each day in the week before you plant them outside.

Types of Yarrow

Originally, yarrow garden flowers only came in drab whites and creams. Today you can find them in various colors, such as soft pinks, lavenders, bright yellows, rich reds, and warm apricot. All these shades are shown off well against the plant’s silver-green foliage. The leaves themselves are finely dissected and form tight mats that slowly spread. Yarrow blooms also make long-lasting cut flowers that can be easily dried.

Current breeding work has been focused on improving the flaws of yarrow. The most significant change has been the creation of dwarf varieties of plants that won’t flop or break in the wind. Color options are also getting richer as many varieties branch out from the pastel palette. New yarrow types also boast longer bloom times and blooms that repeat all season; be sure to cut
back spent flowers to help them in the long run.

Anthea yarrow

Achillea ‘Anblo’ is a hybrid yarrow that bears 3-inch-wide clusters of soft primrose-yellow blooms that fade to cream. The plant has silvery-gray foliage and is resistant to powdery mildew, making it a good choice for regions with high humidity. It grows 18-24 inches tall and wide. Zones 4-9

‘Appleblossom’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Appleblossom’ is a fast-spreading plant with pale pink blooms and grayish-green feathery leaves. Zones 3-9

‘Apricot Delight’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Apricot Delight’ bears reddish, apricot-color blooms that fade to lovely shades of peachy coral as they age. The long-blooming flowers form on compact plants. Zones 3-9

‘Cerise Queen’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Cerise Queen’ produces pretty, magenta-pink blooms in late spring to early summer that hover over fernlike green foliage. Zones 3-9

Common yarrow

Achillea millefolium is a drought-tolerant native plant with ferny green foliage and white flower clusters in summer. It is also deer-resistant and attracts butterflies. The spreading clumps of common yarrow grow 1-3 feet tall. Another common name for the plant is bloodwort, a reference to its historical use as a topical wound dressing. Zones 3-9

Fernleaf yarrow

Achillea filipendulina offers finely cut gray-green foliage and reaches 3-5 feet tall. It bears mustard-yellow flowers in mid to late summer. Zones 3-9

‘Paprika’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Paprika’ blooms in brilliant scarlet red with a distinctive yellow eye. With age, the flowers take on a pink hue. The plant blooms all summer if deadheaded. Zones 3-9

‘Wonderful Wampee’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium Tutti Frutti ‘Wonderful Wampee’ blooms from early to late summer with light pink flower clusters that mature to apple-blossom pink. The drought- and heat-tolerant plants don’t melt down in summer’s heat. ‘Wonderful Wampee’ grows 18-24 inches tall and wide, gradually spreading to form large clumps. Zones 3-9

‘Pomegranate’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium Tutti Frutti ‘Pomegranate’ has deep red blooms that hold their color well in the garden. If deadheaded after the first flush of bloom, plants push out additional flowers until a hard freeze in fall. ‘Pomegranate’ yarrow grows 24-30 inches tall and wide. Zones 3-9

‘Pink Grapefruit’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Pink Grapefruit’ is a compact, vigorous plant with large domed flowers that open deep pink and slowly change to creamy rose. Zones 3-9

‘Strawberry Seduction’ yarrow

Achillea millefolium ‘Strawberry Seduction’ shows off velvety-red blooms with bright gold centers that fade to maize-yellow as they age. Zones 3-9

Woolly yarrow

Achillea tomentosa ‘Lemon’ bears clear yellow flowers in early summer that appear over the 6-inch-tall foliage that’s covered in soft, silvery hairs. Zones 4-8

Yarrow Companion Plants

Daylily

Daylilies are so easy to grow you’ll often find these escapees from gardens in ditches and fields. And yet they look so delicate, producing glorious trumpet-shaped blooms in numerous colors. There are 50,000 named hybrid cultivars in various flower sizes (the minis are very popular), forms, and plant heights. Some are fragrant.

The flowers are borne on leafless stems. Although each bloom lasts only a single day, better cultivars carry several buds on each scape which extends bloom time, especially if you deadhead daily. The strappy foliage may be evergreen or deciduous.

Penstemon

This North American native plant has a home in nearly every garden with flowers that hummingbirds love. Long blooming with brilliantly colored tubular flowers, penstemons have been a staple in European gardens for decades. There are many different penstemon types.

The leaves can be lance-shaped or oval and sometimes purple-red, as in ‘Husker Red’. Some Western species need superior drainage to dry conditions and won’t thrive during wet weather. However, many, such as ‘Husker Red’, thrive in various conditions. Just be sure to provide excellent drainage. Mulch in areas where plants are marginally hardy.

Salvia

There are hundreds of different types of salvias, commonly called sage, but they all tend to share beautiful, tall flower spikes and attractive, often gray-green leaves. As a result, countless sages (including the herb used in cooking) are available to decorate ornamental gardens, and new selections appear annually.

Sages are valued for their very long bloom season up until frost. Not all are hardy in cold climates, but they’re easy to grow as annuals. On square stems with often-aromatic leaves, sages carry dense or loose spires of tubular flowers in bright blues, violets, yellow, pinks, or red that mix well with other perennials in beds and borders. Provide full sun or very light shade in well-drained average soil.