Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Print Fact Sheet

Verbascum virgatum

Common name

Twiggy mullein, Green mullein

Family

Scrophulariaceae

Where found

Paddocks, disturbed sites, gardens, and roadsides. Widespread.

Notes

Introduced biennial herb to 2 m tall. Stem hairy to sticky hairy. Leaves form a rosette in the first year; and a single leafy stem, alternating up the stem, crowned by the inflorescence, in the second year. Basal leaves 8-30 cm long, 30-100 mm wide, hairy, sometimes sticky, margins toothed and often wavy. Upper leaves smaller, bases stem clasping. Flowers 30-40 mm in diameter, yellow with a purple centre, with a short tube and 5 unequal lobes, in clusters of 1-6, forming an open spike 30-80 cm long up the stem. Flowers Spring to Autumn.

PlantNET description: http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Verbascum~virgatum (accessed 8 February, 2021)