Verbascum blattaria f alba

MOTH MULLEIN

No WA

Verbascum blattaria f alba
MOTH MULLEIN

Verbascum blattaria f alba produces masses of flowers and willowy height, without taking up lots of space in the garden.
Because the slender, gracious flower spikes reach 1.2m. high, but rising from rosettes of glossy, crinkly dark green leaves that sit flat to the ground.
Not permitted for entry to WA

Milky white moths of flowers

These tall flowering spires are first packed with dark crimson-purple buds.
Which then begin to open in a procession to large milk-white flowers with deep purple stamens.
And silky petals which quiver in the breeze like a gossamer moths.

Long blooming

Moth Mullein has a particularly long blooming season, continuing to form spires and pop flowers from mid spring all the way into autumn.
Trimming off spent spires can of course prolong the flowering period and quantity of spires even more.

Hot dry & frost hardy

Verbascum blattaria f alba is very hardy plant well suited to Australian gardens with hot, dry summers and frosty winters. Or where water is limited.
So it is able to resist periods of drought and heat.
And is soundly frost tolerant, even in hard frosts.
Happily it prefers sandy, gravel or poorer soils and anything with good drainage.
And without too much fertilizer for best flowering.

Friendly to bees but not to rabbits & deer

Bees, butterflies and other useful pollinating insects are besotted with the constant procession of nectar-rich flowers.
Though happily rabbits and deer are not attracted to the taste.

Verbascum blattaria f alba is a long blooming, and self sowing biennial.
It will self seed into the garden to produce the next generation all by itself, unless you cut off all the spires before they set seed. So it is a good idea to leave a spire for seed production and let it get on with it.

SEED SOWING ADVICE: QUICK & EASY

Suitable for beginners & gardening with kids

Sow all year in punnets indoors / scatter in the garden in spring or autumn.

Sow indoors for quick plants & early flowers: First sow the seeds in a punnet on the surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Then pat gently to the surface to ensure good contact.
Now barely cover the seed with sieved mix / vermiculite / or fine sandy grit.
Because these seeds need light to germinate, so do not bury them.

Now thoroughly moisten the sown punnet by standing in a shallow water bath.
And allowing the moisture to percolate up to the surface from below.

Then place the punnet in a warm, well-lit position (not in direct sun).
You can use a heat mat if you have one, or a warm window sill (out of the sun).

Temperatures of 15-20C approx. are best for rapid and optimum germination.

Continue to keep moist by misting from a spray water bottle as required.
Covering the punnet with a clear plastic lid helps top conserve moisture.

Seedlings emerge in approx. 7-21 days.

Seed Count: 100 seeds per pack approx.
(We always aim to exceed the stated seed count and give a generous serve).

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