On 07/02/2012 11:54 AM, Martin Brown wrote:
On 02/07/2012 10:50, Jake wrote:
On Mon, 02 Jul 2012 09:10:05 +0100, Martin Brown
wrote:

On 02/07/2012 08:11, Kate Morgan wrote:
A neighbour said to me that I should get rid of the stuff growing on
the
stone walls at the front of our old house. The stuff she was referring
to is Valerian, I love it and look forward to it every year. I have the
three colours and yes it seed`s freely - perhaps that is what she
meant - but it looks delightful, in my opinion :-)

kate

You do have to dead head it to prevent massive numbers of nuisance
volunteer plants springing up everywhere. It is almost as prolific a
wind borne seed generator as dandelions. I grow it deliberately to
encourage butterflies and hummingbird hawk moths in the sunshine.

It looks nice at the base of a hedge or on otherwise inhospitable spots.
It will grow almost anywhere including in the mortar of garden walls and
the strong thick roots can damage them. Arguably it is a weed because it
is so vigorous but the flowers and nectar are worth it at least in a
cottage garden. It would be a menace in a small garden.

It is just out now but it is so cold and wet recently that there are
almost no butterflies to be seen on it at all

I would love to grow it. My neighbours got some years ago and have
been trying to confine it ever since as it spread all over their
garden and is progressing along the street on the opposite side of
their garden to mine. But it has not spread my way and though they
have given me several clumps it will not grow in my garden. Don't know
why.

I'd hazard a guess that the soil is too fertile or well drained! It will
grow in the most inhospitable of places at least on a clay soil.


I think that's probably exactly right. I had it at the base of a
hornbeam hedge, in ground that was tunneled under by voles (and moles I
expect) so that any water just disappeared. It thrived there for years!

I love the stuff.