Hieracium
Hawkweed
- Height × spread
- 0.25m – 0.3m × 0.3m – 0.4m
- Position
- Full sun
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
There are many species and forms of hawkweeds and very few are used as garden ornamentals. They typically have little yellow dandelion-like flowers that are held on long stems above a rosette of green leaves. The garden worthy forms have foliage interest with grey (as with grey and hairy Hieracium villosum), or purple (as with purple spotted Hieracium maculatum). The orange hawkweed now called Pilosella aurantiaca is also a charming plant for a wild garden. The hawkweeds are generally best grown in wild places, or, where their foliage is of interest, tucked into rock gardens. The ornamental forms are likely to stand 60cm high at most and are summer flowering.
- Flower colour
- Yellow
- Foliage colour
- Blue, Green, Grey, Purple
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- No
- Shape
- Dome, Fan
- Height
- 0.25m – 0.3m
- Spread
- 0.3m – 0.4m
- Season of interest
- Spring, Summer, Autumn
- Evergreen
- Evergreen
- Garden style
- Seaside garden, Gravel garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun
- Soil type
- Chalk
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Well drained soil, Dry soil, Drought resistant
- Winter hardiness
- Varies, most are hardy
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Hazards
- No
Spring
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water in dry periods
Established plants in the ground can cope with 7-10 days of dryness, and shrubs often manage 2 to 3 weeks. Water one section of the garden thoroughly each day rather than a little everywhere. Check plants in pots more often, especially in hot weather.
Spring - early-mid · Planting
Divide when too large
The plant can be divided if it becomes too large or another plant is required. This may involve physically dividing the clump in two, removing offsets or small bulbs or dividing rhizomes. The new plants can be grown in pots or planted in the ground.
Spring-Autumn · Planting
Prune to remove flowers
Note: Foliage or flowers? Where luxurious foliage is required, or the flowers are not, to some people, especially attractive (as is often the case with hot-effect grey-foliage plants), remove developing flower stems entirely.
For plants grown for their foliage effect rather than the flowers, developing flower stems can be cut off at their base as they grow.