Wild and Weedy Wednesday: Great Mullein

 Verbascum thapsus; the name alone sounds imposing. And the plant is indeed a giant. When you see the rosette shaped seedlings with their hairy leaves, you can imagine something great will come of them…

Great Mullein or Common Mullein is a majestic plant, and its common name in German pays tribute to that fact: ‘King’s Candle’ (Königskerze). This specimen is an excellent example….

This biennial native plant grows to up to 2 metres and stands perfectly upright, even in exposed situations. And they often do choose open and exposed spots to grow, standing above all the surrounding vegetation. The pretty yellow flowers are small, and only a few at the tip of the long flowering stalk open at a time. The seeds are dispersed by the wind and need light to germinate.

Verbascum thapsus can be used as a herbal remedy. For example, the leaves and flowers are anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and astringent, relieving pain, swelling and healing wounds. Good to know.

We have three in our garden – two next to the orchard and one in my flower bed!

Last autumn I sowed some Verbascum album in pots, and in spring I planted them in my Moon Bed… while planting them I noticed a seedling (it really looked identical) already growing there and thought to myself, I must have sown some direct as well. A couple of months later the pretty V. album flowered…

It is the smaller plant in the foreground above, with delicate white flowers with pink centres… behind it is the other much larger plant looked a bit rougher and more robust, with hairier foliage. Definitely not a ‘cultivated’ variety! Soon after it also flowered and was indeed a wild one, taking advantage of my negligence! (I rather like it there though, and it can stay. )

Have you ever been fooled like that with a wild plant? And do you see these large weeds near you?

Thanks for visiting

and

Happy Weeding!