Verbascum hybridum Wega at Digging Dog Nursery

Banana Custard Mullein

Mullein

This genus has a host of common names, including ‘Beggar’s Blanket’ and ‘Old Man’s Flannel’. In England, the very poor used to put the thick leaves into their shoes for warmth. It is also said that when fish eat the seeds, they are stupefied and can be gathered by hand.

Although most of the more than 300 species are biennials, our offerings are perennials. Though some are dwarfs and some are giants, nearly all have fuzzy stamens and prefer very well drained sandy or rocky soil. We like to use them in the rock garden as specimens or for naturalizing.

Verbascum hybridum ‘Wega’

A felted, biennial rosette of ample, grayish green ripple-edged foliage launches spectacular 6 ft. tall luminous flowering stalks. The crowded, blunt-tipped stout stems house fuzzy, round silver buds and large, saucer-shaped blossoms bathed in soft custard yellow hues with orange anthers.

These long blooming, multibranched beauties are some of the last flowers to grace our mixed border, delivering glowing vertical accents ‘til October’s end.

Blooms July–October.

Size: 6' high x 2' wide; hardy to zone 6.