Epilobium hirsutum Seeds | Great Willowherb
LATIN NAME: Epilobium hirsutum
COMMON NAME: Great Willowherb
Plant Profile
Great Willowherb (Epilobium hirsutum) is a tall, softly hairy perennial of the evening-primrose family (Onagraceae), native to the wetlands of Europe, Asia and North Africa. It grows 1-2 m tall, with lance-shaped leaves and showy, four-petalled, pink-purple flowers through summer, followed by pods of silky-tufted seeds. A handsome plant of riverbanks and ditches, it is one of the largest willowherbs.
Science & Biotechnology
Research touching on Epilobium hirsutum ranges from the botany of the willowherb family to practical horticulture, including seed handling, propagation and the selection of superior forms. Wind-dispersed seeds of great willowherb give it a recognised place in research on damp-meadow wildflowers of willowherb family, and hirsutum species appears in studies of seed dispersal and early cover on disturbed ground. With present-day seed handling, raising this species well within the reach of any careful grower.
Uses & Benefits
Beyond its ornamental appeal, Great Willowherb has the practical versatility that makes a plant worth growing from seed year after year. In damp garden, great willowherb wands summer corner with rose-purple spikes. Flowers open for bees and hoverflies, seed heads release silky tufts on wind, and plant fills wild corner and the pondside. It grows well in moist, well-drained, sunny ground. Mature plants need little attention in a well-chosen position.
Willowherbs are traditional European teas for prostate and urinary comfort, and small-flowered species’ oenothein tannins are studied accordingly; they are also vital pioneer plants after forest fires.
Growing from Seed
Sow fresh seed of Great Willowherb under ordinary good conditions. Use a fine, free-draining seed compost, scatter the seed evenly, cover it lightly and hold it just moist in good light. A cool, moist period before sowing helps the seeds wake evenly — a few weeks in damp medium in the refrigerator is the usual approach. When the young plants are big enough to handle, space them into pots or a nursery row and let them size up before their final move.
Our Take
As a tall, upright herb, it settles into a routine quickly once established. Great Willowherb has real presence in the garden without demanding much in return. The seed responds well to a spell of cold stratification, a small step that pays off.
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