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Does anyone know what this is?

(47 Posts)
Greytin94 Wed 15-May-19 13:02:04

Does anyone know what this is ,please?
We bought it last year in the clearance section of our garden centre for 20 p. It had no label and was in a very sorry state. It died back over winter but is thriving now. It doesn’t seem to have any flowers just tiers of twisty, curly leaves.

Rutheleanor Thu 16-May-19 10:04:02

There is an app I use called Pl@ntnet. It is free. You just show it a leaf or flower and it tells you what it is. Good fun.

Gelisajams Thu 16-May-19 10:16:46

Evening primrose. Will randomly seed all over your garden once it’s flowered!

Davida1968 Thu 16-May-19 10:17:22

I agree with others that it's an Evening Primrose. I love these; they are good for bees and other insects which support wildlife. And they can really appear to "glow" in the evening light.

Gonegirl Thu 16-May-19 10:18:18

I must get that Rutheleanor. Sounds great!

Gonegirl Thu 16-May-19 10:21:08

Yes, I think it's growing too upright to be verbascum. Don't the leaves of that stay close to the ground, whilst spikes of flowers grow upwards?

sazz1 Thu 16-May-19 10:55:07

There's an app you can get called Plantsnap that claims to identify any plant in the world. Haven't used it yet but worth a try. You just take a photo on your phone

Urmstongran Thu 16-May-19 11:00:20

You beat me to it Roseleanor!

Tamayra Thu 16-May-19 12:21:34

Dandelions really help balance out the soul So be really pleased you have them
When the soil is balanced they no longer grow
I read this just today
Posted by a botanical friend on FB

Craftycat Thu 16-May-19 14:14:39

Yep - Evening Primrose. I took picture outside & it looks just the same as mine. They spread so beware but the bees love them.

Molly10 Thu 16-May-19 14:17:45

Take the pics back to the garden centre you bought it from and they should be able to tell you for sure and give you tips on how to get the best out of it.

I'm sure they would be pleased to know you had rescued it from the compost....maybe! smile

Aepgirl Thu 16-May-19 16:30:27

There are a couple of apps that allow you to take a photo of a plant and it will identify it for you - sometimes giving 2 or 3 alternatives. Otherwise, in my humble opinion, it looks a bit weed-like.

Paperbackwriter Thu 16-May-19 17:54:07

I've got the PlantSnap app on my phone. It's really easy to use and you just take a pic while the app is open and it'll tell you what it is. Sadly the other day it told me that a very prolific plant that had appeared in a pot in my garden and which I'd been nurturing was only oil seed rape!

nettyandmasey Thu 16-May-19 22:12:24

I think evening primrose.

Nana3 Thu 16-May-19 22:53:59

My first thought was evening primrose.
Love the idea of dandelions balancing the soul Tamayra?. The bees seem pleased to have them.

Greytin94 Fri 17-May-19 11:26:06

Thanks again everyone for your advice.
It’s been so interesting reading all your opinions.
I’ve used the plant snap app and it tells me I have a verbascum Hungarian Mullein.
So I guess I’ll just have to watch it grow and see how it develops.
I’ve added another picture so everyone can see how it fits in in relation to my other plants.
Thanks again

shysal Fri 17-May-19 13:17:34

Greytin, I have one of those flower solar lights, and a bluebell one.

Gonegirl Fri 17-May-19 15:41:36

Well I never! A verbascum. I would have sworn evening primrose. Well, verbascum is classier than evening primrose. Well done!

shandi6570 Mon 20-May-19 17:36:09

Me too 'Gonegirl', just goes to show. However it does make sense if it was bought from a garden centre in the beginning as I'm not sure I've ever seen evening primroses for sale. I look forward to future photos Greytin.

Greytin94 Wed 17-Jul-19 17:54:44

In case anyone is still interested, here are some updated pictures of the mystery plant. It’s now taller than me ,5 ft 4 in, and is nicknamed the Triffid.
It’s been interesting watching it grow. We’ve marvelled at how such a tiny , cast off bargain has grown into such a monster.

Greytin94 Wed 17-Jul-19 18:04:22

A closeup of the flowers

Fennel Wed 17-Jul-19 19:15:47

Beautiful - that's definitely a mullein. We had one in our last garden, I love the furry leaves.
As for dandelions, the french call them pissenlits too..