Last year I raised this plant from a seed that was apparently mixed in with other ones, because this was the only one. It took a long time to grow, making a small rosette of serrated leaves. When I transplanted it out it kept adding to the rosette, and only after perhaps 2 months did it start to send up a shoot, See next picture.
Next event in the life of this mystery flower. One more coming to show blooms.
And here it is, really pretty. Do you think it could be a malva?
PS: I do not have any more seeds - I think, unless they are still in with the rest of original batch (which was Gauras from my DS). DS does not remember.
This message was edited Jan 14, 2007 5:12 PM
Have no idea, but it is sure pretty.
Yes I agree with you , it is in the mallow family. I had a wild lychnis show up in my garden -if you know Lychnis chalcedonia or arkwrightii, this one looked similar but the flower was white
I believe it is a verbascum. Perhaps verbascum chaixii. Lovely!
I think it is a Verbascum too. But not chaixii. Perhaps blatteria? http://www.kuleuven-kortrijk.be/facult/wet/biologie/pb/kulakbiocampus/images/buiten-kulak/lage_planten/Verbascum%20blattaria%20-%20Mottenkruid/index.htm
That's the closest I can come up with in a short time.
What is confusing to me is the shape of the leaves, they are quite different from the ones of Verbascum blatteria, and my DS said that chaixii is too grey.
Another question, should it cut the "stem" now or later? There are still lots of leaves up about 1 foot of the stem. The other leaves are mostly green to some of them being bronzish on the edges. Should I send a picture?
This message was edited Jan 17, 2007 1:09 PM
We have a wild Verbascum in my zone, looks just like this one and believe me ...it is a vicious weed..Pretty at first, but not after the next million or so, lol...it has yellow blooms and a root that goes to China..
Larkie
Clementine, I have never seen Verbascum blatteria up close and in person. It is one that is hard to find a picture of the leaf clump before flower stalks are shown. There are some glimpses of leaves that look similar in shape to your plant in the background of these pics in the above link, but still......hard to say. Maybe yours is a cross with or a hybrid of some sort, or maybe it is just very healthy growing conditions.
I found this bit in my book Perennials The Definitive Reference by Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix. ">>>flowering in May-July. A biennial or short-lived perennial, with a rosette of lower leaves, pinnate with round lobes. Stems to 150cm, glabrous below, glandular above."....etc.
If you take a look in PlantFiles at Verbascum blattaria f. albiflorum, the second picture by muddpuppy, shows leaves that are .....sorta close, at least in shape. http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/54987/index.html
You may get a positive ID for your plant if you post it in the Identification forum.
Larkie: I will watch mine very carefully!!
Echoes: I have just posted to the id forum, thanks for telling me about it. I think that the picture you are referring to looks a bit more "hairy" or fuzzy and the shape of the leaves does not seem quite right also. I'll be curious what the id people come up with.
When I first looked at the top picture I said to myself that it looked like a weed that we have, then I remembered what my husband told me that our weeds are a special plant to another area of the country. When we traveled north a couple of years ago, we kept seeing plants growing wild in many of the states and were told that they were weeds. In the south, they are prized plants. Anyway, I would transplant it to a pot and keep an eye until you can find out if it is an envasive weed or a jewel of a plant. Just my .02cents worth.
dldbrou: You are so right, one man's poison is another man's .... what? delicacy? Are you looking at the identification forum that I started about this? I'll see what the end result will be there, and your idea of maybe potting it up may save me a lot of grief in the future. Thanks.
Look at the leaves on this site. Yours do match Verbascum blattaria, the flowers would be form albiflora.
Basal leaves, and those on the upper stem are different, as shown here.
http://www.missouriplants.com/Yellowalt/Verbascum_blattaria_f_blattaria_page.html
Flowers, pinkish flush an pink in bud
http://biology.missouristate.edu/Herbarium/Plants%20of%20the%20Interior%20Highlands/Flowers/Verbascum%20blattaria%20f.%20albiflora%20-%201.jpg
This message was edited Jan 21, 2007 2:10 AM
Wallaby: Thank you for finding this site. I agree, and like echoes suggested, that it looks like Verbascum blattaria, although the leaves on mine are nowhere near 17cm, more like 10, I would say. I must admit that I don't understand what this means: "Leaves in inflorescence reduced to bracts", but the leaves are up to and in between the flowers and look the same as all the rest, only smaller. Maybe next year the plant will be bigger and the leaves will be closer to ~17cm. I'll be very curious and watch it all year.
"Leaves in inflorescence reduced to bracts"
That means the leaves where they surround the flowers are bracts, the smaller ones which surround the flower, if that makes sense. It's a hormonal thing I think.
17cm is only close on 7" the lower end of the scale, it says "to +17cm", which will be the shorter length and upwards.
Thanks, wallaby, I understand now. One day I may be able to get another picture to show the size of the leaves. I hope you will see it. I won't close this thread in the meantime.
