Worth knowing:
The domestic Large Flowered Mullein is a green hibernating, biennial medicinal plant that grows bolt upright and reaches heights of up to 200 cm. From July until September it produces numerous, fragrant, bright yellow coloured and up to 4 cm big blossoms. Already Hippocrates has mentioned the Verbascum as a medicinal plant, and in the Celtic solstice celebration, the dried flower scapes were soaked with resin or wax and used as torch lights. In the first year, the plant grows its leaf rosette, and in the second year it develops to full bloomage.
Natural Location:
The Large Flowered Mullein has its natural habitat in Central and South Europe as well as in other temperate regions.
Cultivation:
Seed propagation indoors is possible throughout the year. As a cold germinator, you should initially keep the seeds in the refrigerator for about three weeks to increase the germinability. After that, slightly press the fine seeds onto moist potting compost or herb-substrate and put only very little compost earth on top since the Large Flowered Mullein is a light germinator. Cover the seed container with clear film to prevent the earth from drying out, but don’t forget to make some holes in the clear film and take it every second or third day completely off for about 2 hours. That way you avoid mold formation on your potting compost. Place the seed container somewhere bright and warm with a temperature between 20°C and 25°Celsius and keep the earth – for instance with a water sprayer – moist, but not wet. For seed propagation outdoors, you can plant the seeds in spring or in autumn into the garden and put very little earth on top, before gentle watering.
Place:
The Large Flowered Mullein prefers a sunny and rather wind-protected location.
Care:
The Large Flowered Mullein is a rather carefree plant. You can best harvest the blossoms on sunny days and preferably around midday. For drying, a shaded and warm place would be ideal.
During the winter:
The plant is fully frost-resistant, and once it is planted out, it will self-seed for reproduction.
Picture credits:
- © © Manfred Heyde - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Frank Laue - © Saflax - http://www.saflax.de/copyright
- © Manfred Heyde - CC-BY-SA-3.0 - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0
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