Can anyone help?

Could anybody tell me the name of this plant and advise me whether i should cut it back, as it has now stopped flowering, and would i be able to take a cutting as its came from a bulb?
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I cant tell you the name of the plant...though someone will....but if it's grown from a bulb then I would have thought no. Bulbs reproduce and provide clumps under the soil, which you can divide after they have died down.:thumb:

 

Its Red Valerian.

Doesnt grow from a bulb, but has normal roots. You can cut it back happily, its preatty tough and grows like / is a weed.

 

Gotta say,
I've been trying to eradicate it for a while now.
It seeds everywhere, so be careful with it.

 

Despite being a bit of a "weed/wildflower" fan, Red Valerian is a selfseeding nightmare, as bad as red-legs (sorry don`t know the botanical name) it is a nuisance-it naturalised from gardens I think.

 

Im shocked to hear its such a nightmare it looked nice when it came out (although it was a bit uncontrollable, thats why i had to tie it together) i actually bought it from dobbies garden centre i think i may remove the thing now due to the weed/wild comments. Thanks for the info.

 

Red Valerian (Centranthus rubra). If you cut it back now it will repeat flower. Mine takes as little as three weeks to flower again after cutting back. I think it is a great plant, as its pretty and is one of the longest flowering plants in the garden.

You propagate it by seed. You can't take cuttings (I've tried), and you can't easily divide it as it has a tap root (ie a single or small number of very deep roots). But there is compensation. The long tap root allows it to thrive in extremely dry places. I had it in sun under a beech tree where nothing else would grow. The individual plants only last about 4 to 6 years, but as others have said you should get plenty of seedlings, and you can transplant seedlings as their tap root will not have developed yet.

I have never found it to be a nightmare, quite the contrary, I love it - though it does self seed. Some years more so than others. I have a triangular clump bordered on one side by a fence and on another by a small wall, so it is a bit restricted.

 

Red Valerian is a beautiful flower, and if it could behave itself it would be perfect because it is so tough.

The most honest advice I can give on this is if it gives you joy then don`t take it out, keep it-don`t listen to what anyone else has to say about what is or is not a good plant.

The beauty of having my garden is that I love to be in it-nettles, bramble and all.

 

It also has homeapathic propertys.

 

It should get itself a lettings agent! Sorry-carp at jokes.

The romans brought it with them didn`t they-or am i thinking of something else.




Eeeeh-yer a treasure trove of bits of information, will you be in my pub quiz team if we are ever up your end?:thumb: