​Verbena hastata, Blue Vervain

One of a few native species that simply arrived in the Ottawa garden without any assistance from me. -One of the many benefits of only pulling the ‘weeds’ once I know who they area.

Very adaptable based on their setting, they grow to around 36” in the urban garden beds or the country vegetable garden. In the dry meadow they are a bit less vigorous, reaching around 18” to 30” and in wet meadow areas heights of 50” or more aren’t uncommon.

While often quite tall and narrow when growing in uncultivated spaces with plenty of neighbours, the individual in the vegetable garden that I eventually nicknamed Grandma Vervain matured to a clump that is over 3’ in width. All of that width grows up from a single crown each spring since Vervain by generous seeding, rather than rhizomes or offsets.

The candelabra of little purple-blue flowers are an early July to early August affair, working their way up from bottom to top like a slow burning firework. An incredibly diversity of pollinators enjoys the blooms and various small critters dine on tiny bites of their leaves, which the plants don’t seem to be fussed by at all.

These Verbena really don’t seem to expect anything of me, care wise. I do gather and distribute their seeds though. I like to share the joy. The huge plant in the vegetable garden offered a stunning abundance of seed for several years, much of which was distributed through the Ottawa Wildflower Seed Library or sent to the North American Native Plant Society for their seed exchange.

Much like Rudbeckia hirta, these can bloom in the first year from seed, especially if started a bit early and then transplanted to the garden when the weather warms, and can fade away after a few years as a garden or ecosystem filles in. Their seeds will bide their time in the soil, waiting for the next round if disturbance to open a sunny spot for them and then they’ll reappear with their cheerful blooms and abundant food for the pollinators.

I’d say that, in addition to all of the uncultivated settings that they find themselves at home in, these would easily blend into a perennial border or English cottage style garden. Their fast growth from seed also makes me think that they would be excellent in mixed waterside restoration plantings.

In a sunny garden or newly planted meadow a few possible neighbours would include Anise Hyssop, Swamp Milkweed, Fireweed, Flat-Topped White Aster, Common Sneezeweed, Wild Bergamot, Stiff-leaved and Wrinkleleaf Goldenrod, New England and Smooth Blue Aster, Culver’s Root and Grey-headed Prairie Coneflower. Some grasses to include could be fast growing Canada Wild Rye, lower growing Sideoats Grama or taller Switchgrass, just to name a few.

In a high moisture area, they would be very happy alongside Swamp Milkweed, any of the moisture loving Sedges, Flat-topped White Aster, Common Boneset, Joe-Pye Weed, Swamp Rosemallow, Scarlet Beebalm, Cutleaved Coneflower and Swamp Aster.