Verbascum
Mullein
- Height × spread
- 0.3m – 2.5m × 0.2m – 1m
- Position
- Full sun
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
These are plants with attitude and the larger forms, such as the biennial Verbascum bombyciferum, can stand around 2.5 metres in height. With its white woolly foliage and stout flowering spike set with yellow flowers, it dominates all about it. There are a good number of hybrids with very attractive flowers presently available, in addition to the familiar stalwarts Verbascum chaixii and Verbascum thapsus. There are also a number of much smaller hybrids, some of which only reach around 60 centimetres in height and which are positively dainty. They also come in some intriguing colours with many pastel tints as well as subtle apricot and beige tones. Verbascum are not long lived plants, and some of the taller forms may not be self-supporting in exposed positions.
- Flower colour
- Blue, Cream, Lavender, Lilac, Orange, Pink, Purple, Red, Violet, White, Yellow
- Foliage colour
- Green, Grey
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- No
- Shape
- Column, Fan, Round
- Height
- 0.3m – 2.5m
- Spread
- 0.2m – 1m
- Season of interest
- Spring, Summer, Autumn
- Evergreen
- Evergreen
- Garden style
- Wild flower meadow, Seaside garden, Prairie garden, Mediterranean garden, Gravel garden, Exotic garden, Cottage garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun
- Soil type
- Chalk, Gravelly soil, Loam (normal), Poor soil, Sandy soil
- Soil pH
- Alkaline, Neutral
- Drainage
- Well drained soil, Dry soil, Drought resistant
- Winter hardiness
- Varies, some are not hardy
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Use for
- Structural, Architectural, Deer resistant, Rabbit resistant, Bee attraction, Butterfly attraction
- Hazards
- No
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
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.
Planting & general
Compost · Planting
Multi-purpose compost
Use a good quality peat-free multi-purpose compost when growing in pots and containers.
Found in
More Verbascum
Verbascum 'Clementine'
Mullein
Verbascum bombyciferum
Silk-bearing mullein
Verbascum 'Cherry Helen'
Mullein
Verbascum 'Cotswold Beauty'
Mullein
Verbascum 'Cotswold Queen'
Mullein
Verbascum 'Dark Eyes'
Mullein
Verbascum 'Gainsborough'
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Verbascum 'Helen Johnson'
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