Acaena argentea is native to the Andean regions of South America, mainly Peru and Chile, where it grows in open environments, on poor and well-drained soils, between high-altitude meadows and rocky areas.
It forms a dense, creeping mat, rarely taller than 10 to 15 cm, whose main attraction lies in its evergreen foliage: pinnate leaves, finely cut, with a silvery green and metallic sheen, due to a fine whitish pubescence that gives them a particular brightness even without flowering.
The flowers, small and without petals, are grouped in globular whitish to greenish heads, not very spectacular. They give way to characteristic spiny fruits, capable of clinging to fur and clothing.
In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from November to January (austral summer). In cultivation in our latitudes, it blooms in June-July.
In gardens, it is effectively used as ground cover on rock gardens or sunny dry slopes.