Rose bay willow herb - how good?

[snowdrop]

I really like willow herb but it only visits my garden every few years. Isn't it also known as fire weed because it likes to grow where there's been a fire?

I'd like to have a permanent patch of it but it just wont settle. I no longer have a coal fire so I have no ashes to dig in.

[Kayleigh]

Originally Posted by snowdrop

I really like willow herb but it only visits my garden every few years. Isn't it also known as fire weed because it likes to grow where there's been a fire?

I'd like to have a permanent patch of it but it just wont settle. I no longer have a coal fire so I have no ashes to dig in.

It also grows where the soil has been disturbed. So if you do some digging you may activate dormant seeds. I think the seeds must need light to grow like poppies.

[aeshna5]

Originally Posted by snowdrop

I really like willow herb but it only visits my garden every few years. Isn't it also known as fire weed because it likes to grow where there's been a fire?

I'd like to have a permanent patch of it but it just wont settle. I no longer have a coal fire so I have no ashes to dig in.

It is also known as Fireweed, especially as it was one of the first colonists after sites were blitzed in the war. I remember seeing acres of it growing in Finland- a spectacular sight!

[snowdrop]

Thanks Kayleigh. The sun is trying its best to come out so I think I'll pop out and do a bit of digging.