Geranium_gem's Garden
Linaria purpurea (Purple Toadflax)
Genus: Linaria.
Species: Linaria purpurea.
A herbaceous perennial with narrow, grey-green leaves arranged in dense whorls. It has spires of tiny, snapdragon shaped, purple flowers that are borne on tall stems in summer.
Hardy, semi-evergreen.
Height 0.3m-1m x spread 0.3m.
Clump forming.
Preferred conditions: Full sun, well-drained soil.
Reasonably drought-tolerant.
Good for bees.
Self-seeds (remove spent heads if don't want it to spread around).
Propagate by dividing clumps in Spring or by seed. Sow March/April and/ or August/September. Sow seeds shallowly in pots filled with a good seed compost in early spring and keep in a cold frame until they germinate. Pot on when they are large enough to handle and gradually harden off before planting them out at 30cm intervals, taking care not to damage their roots. Leave a few of the faded flower spikes on the plants as this will encourage them to self-seed.
Family name: Scrophulariaceae
Native to Italy.
