Verbascum nigrum, the black mullein[1] or dark mullein,[2] is a species of biennial or short-lived perennial herbaceous plant in the mullein genus Verbascum, native to dry open sites in temperate Europe. It grows to 0.5–1.5 m (1.6–4.9 ft).

Verbascum nigrum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Scrophulariaceae
Genus: Verbascum
Species:
V. nigrum
Binomial name
Verbascum nigrum

Verbascum nigrum forms clumps of leaves from which arise multiple tall stems of yellow flowers with purple stamens, blooming over a long period in summer and early autumn. It is cultivated as an ornamental plant, and prefers a calcareous or neutral soil in full sun.[2]

Fossil record

edit

A tentative seed identification of V. nigrum has been made from substage II of the Hoxnian interglacial at Clacton in Essex, UK.[3]

References

edit
  1. ^ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "​Verbascum nigrum​". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 29 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Verbascum nigrum". RHS. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  3. ^ The History of the British Flora, A Factual Basis for Phytogeography by Sir Harry Godwin, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, ISBN 0 521 20254 X, 1975 edition page 318