Verbena bonariensis
Approx. 0.5 litre pot
About this cultivar:
Verbena bonariensis is a celebrated perennial whose fans include both experienced gardeners and novices, florists and butterflies, birds and the bees. This versatile South American native delivers outstanding flower power. Rough, lance-shaped dark green basal foliage gives way to wiry and sparsely leafed angular-branching stems, which elevate a consortium of tiny lavender violet blooms. With fragrant flowers borne in dense tufts atop its airy profile, Brazilian Vervain brings a colourful carefree look to cottage gardens or more wild venues, especially when paired with ornamental grasses.
- Position: Full sun, partial shade
- Soil: Almost any soil, grows well in Ballyrobert
- Flowers: June, July, August, September
- Other features: Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit (RHS AGM), Grows well in Ballyrobert
- Hardiness: Fully hardy, grows well in Ballyrobert
- Habit: Clump forming, Columnar or Upright
- Foliage: Deciduous
- Height: 90 - 150 cm (3 - 5 ft)
- Spread: 60 - 90 cm (2 - 3 ft)
- Time to full growth: 2 to 5 years
- Plant type: Herbaceous Perennial
- Colour: Green, purple
- Goes well with: --
About this genus:
Verbena (ver-be-na) is a genus in the family Verbenaceae. It contains about 250 species of herbaceous or semi-woody flowering plants. It gets its name from the ancient, and modern, common name; vervain. These butterfly magnets give new meaning to the words "summer colour", since most Verbena selections bloom for months. Verbena plants like full sun and tolerate drought well, but are fine with us in wet heavy clay soil. Not only is verbena great in the ground, but it also also a stunning container plant or tender perennial in northerly zones. While true Verbena canadensis flowers prolifically only in spring and autumn the modern verbena hybrids make a stunning show all summer long in the perennial garden. Butterflies and bees love them.
Established clumps of verbena should be cut back to basal (on the ground) foliage in early to mid-September. This will promote good rooting of new stems in the ground, which improves winter survival.
They look best planted through other plants, but I also think the look great where they decide to seed themselves.
