Garden verbena St George Seeds

Garden verbena St George is undoubtedly one of the best performing varieties: it is very resistant and blooms continuously from late spring to early autumn with stunning scarlet flowers with contrasting pure white eyes. Remarkable in beds and containers.

Highly appreciated for their abundant, lengthy flowering and their bright colours, Garden Verbena, also known as Verbena hortensis, are half-hardy perennials. This disadvantage is easily outweighed by the fact that they are very easy to grow and that they flower non-stop from June to September. They are versatile plants that can be placed in borders, beds or even in containers.

Derived from the prestigious collection of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew (United Kingdom), garden verbena 'St George' has a compact growth habit, attaining a height of 20 cm and a width of 40 cm. It is also exceptionally mildew resistant! You can easily combine it with Petunias or even Flowering Tobacco, in beds or in containers.

Originating from South America and belonging to the family Verbenaceae, Verbena x hybrida is, as its name suggests, the result of hybridization. It produces finely cut whorls of flowers that are arranged in umbels, forming small, flat bouquets measuring 6 to 8 cm in width, the colours of which vary from one variety to the next. Its leaves are finely cut, sometimes lobed and display a beautiful medium green colour. It is a nectar-rich plant that butterflies are particularly fond of.

Garden verbena thrives in the sun in rich, well-drained soil. When planted in flower boxes, care must be taken to not add too much nitrogenous fertilizer since it can induce excessive leaf growth at the expense of flower development.

Easy to grow, garden verbena can occasionally be prone to fungal diseases (downy and powdery mildew) which can be easily avoided by not placing it in a sheltered area where the air does not circulate much and by taking care to not wet its foliage when watering. Watch out for possible attacks by red spider mites, thrips and slugs. To encourage repeat blooming, remember to remove faded flowers regularly. Little efforts will be richly rewarded!