Verbena bonariensis

Today's the day ………………………. for a little star

I've got lots of this in my garden at the moment - all grown during lockdown, from a packet of seeds that I happened to have.

A tall and slender-stemmed perennial, they are very easy to grow and don't seem to mind where you put them.  They have fragrant lavender to rose-purple flowers in tight clusters that will last from mid-summer right through to the autumn - and are very attractive to butterflies, bees and other beneficial garden insects.

The name - Verbena - is derived from the latin words meaning ‘sacred bough’, in reference to the leafy twigs of vervaine (Verbena officinalis) which were historically carried by priests, used in wreaths for druidic rituals and for medicine ………………….