Description

Verbascum – Celsia – Mullein –

Genus of 360 biennials , and a few annuals, perennial, and sub shrubs, some are semi to fully evergreen, and are within the figwort family.  Recent cultivars are longer lived and have larger flowers.  They are found mainly on dry, stony hillsides, wasteland and in open woodland in Europe, North Africa, and Western and central Asia.  These hairy to woolly plants produce large alternate, simple, smooth edged or toothed, scalloped, lobed, soft textured basal mid to grayish green leaves, which often form large rosettes, with smaller stalk less stem leaves. Most produce one or a few tall, erect stems, that reach 12-40” tall,  bearing flowers in dense spikes, but some have flowers clustered within the rosette centers.  The outward facing, saucer shaped flowers are made up of 5 symmetrical petal are most commonly yellow but there are orange, red-brown, purple, blue or white forms.  Individual flowers are short lived, but they are very numerous, and flowering takes place over a long period.  Semi evergreen species are grown as much for they’re over wintering rosettes of the white woolly leaves, as for their flowers.

Larger species are good for growing in large or mixed herbaceous border or gravel bed, or for naturalizing in a wild or woodland garden.  Smaller species are suitable for a rock garden.

Grow in alkaline, poor, well-drained soil in full sun.  The taller species may need support.  Divide perennial in spring.

Prone to powdery mildew, and variety of fungal leaf spots as well as caterpillars can affect these plants.

V. nigrum – Dark mullein – Black Mullein – Hag Taper– This rosette to clump forming, deciduous to semi evergreen perennial is found from Europe to Russia and grows to 36” tall and 24-36” wide.  It produces egg to oblong, scalloped mid green leaves, 6-16” long.  The leaves become progressively shorter stalked and more rounded up the stems.  All leaves have heart shaped bases and slightly gray wooly beneath.   From mid summer to early autumn, it bears unbranched racemes, 20” long, of clustered, saucer shaped, dark yellow flowers, to 1” across with purple centers.

Zones 3-8