Verbascum blattaria (Moth mullein)

Verbascum blattaria L.

Moth mullein

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Lamiales	Aromatic herbs and shrubs, including lavender, lilac, olive, jasmine, ash, teak, snapdragon, sesame, psyllium, garden sage, mint, basil, and rosemary
Family	Scrophulariaceae	The figwort family (named for the resemblence of root nodes of some species to tubercular human lymph nodes, or scrophula)
Genus	Verbascum	A corruption of the Latin Barbascum, the name for these plants
Species	blattaria	From Latin blatta, for “moth”

About plant names...

Moth mullein is native to Eurasia and West Africa, not to North America. It was introduced, and is now naturalized throughout most of the continent. It is considered an invasive species in many areas. It prefers dry disturbed areas such as meadows, roadsides, vacant lots, and gravel bars.

Identification: Plants reach 18-48" (45-121 cm) in height, with a strong, ribbed central stem. They are usually biennial. They spend their first year as a basal rosette, a circle of gray-green woolly leaves on the ground. The basal rosettes may reach 16" (40 cm) in diameter with oblanceolate, bright green leaves. The leaves have irregular teeth, and may be sparsely hairy to glabrous. In the second year, a flowering stalk appears, a raceme with white-to-yellow flowers 1-1½" (2.5-3.8 cm) around. The flowers have fine purple hairs covering the stamens.

Online References:

Verbascum blattaria at Illinois Wildflowers

Verbascum blattaria on the New England Wildflower Society’s GoBotany site

Verbascum blattaria on Discover Life

Verbascum blattaria on wric.ucdavis.edu (PDF)

References:

Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 146

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 9" (14 × 22 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 3½ × 5" (9.2 × 13 cm)

6/7/2017 · Phillipsburg, New Jersey · By Lawrie Morello

Verbascum blattaria description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

This shows the stem and leaves. The flowers are from a different species, bird’s foot trefoil. · 7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 4½ × 7" (11 × 17 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 3½ × 5" (9.2 × 13 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 6 × 9" (15 × 23 cm)

7/7/2012 · Gibbet Hill, Groton, Massachusetts
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

6/2/2017 · Phillipsburg, New Jersey · By Lawrie Morello

Range:

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