Verbena bonariensis – Hardy Perennial (Set of 3 or 6)

The tall, see through verbena, holding small purple flower heads on wiry stems well above everything planted around it.

Verbena bonariensis reaches 1.2 to 2m but takes up almost no room at ground level, so it goes between other plants rather than behind them and you look through it rather than at it. The stems are square, branching and airy, topped from June with flat clusters of lilac purple flowers that butterflies and bees work all summer. The leaves sit mostly in a basal clump of dark green.

It is hardy through most of Britain at RHS H4 and normally stays out all year, though a hard winter on wet ground can take it and it usually replaces itself by seeding around. Give it full sun and free draining soil, where it copes well with dry spells and with salt laden coastal wind. It flops and flowers poorly in shade. The stems are excellent cut and last well in water. Supplied as an established 1 litre root ball, grown peat free in Yorkshire.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Purpletop vervain, tall verbena, Argentinian vervain
• Fully Grown Height and Spread: 120 to 200cm tall by 30 to 45cm across
• Growth Habit: Tall, upright and airy, on branching wiry stems
• Perfect For: Mixed borders, cottage and wildlife gardens, prairie planting and cutting
• Foliage: Dark green, lance shaped, mostly in a basal clump
• Flowering Time: June to October
• Planting Position: Full sun. It copes with dry soil and with coastal wind, and will sit in a large container
• Soil Type: Free draining, moderately fertile. It dislikes cold wet ground in winter
• Hardiness: Fully hardy, RHS H4. A dry winter mulch helps in a cold garden
• Maintenance: Low. Cut the old stems down in spring and thin the seedlings it leaves behind
• Seasonal Interest: Summer and autumn
• Type: Hardy herbaceous perennial