Forest & Kim Starr · CC BY 3.0
Great mullein
Plant·Verbascum thapsus
Full sun
Sun
Low
Water
Well-drained soil
Drainage
Zones 3–9
Hardiness
Great mullein (Verbascum thapsus) is a plant. It grows best in full sun and has low water needs.
Through the year
DormantLeafing outFloweringDying back
Works well with
from wiki dataNo companions recorded.
WHAT IT NEEDS
Wants full sun
Needs little water
Needs well-drained soil
Prefers soil pH 6–7.5
Show moreShow less
Prefers sandy, loamy, gravelly soil
Tolerates compacted soil well
Draws up potassium, magnesium, sulfur from deep in the soil
Adds a moderate amount of organic matter to the soil
WHAT IT GIVES
Gives mulch biomass (medium)
Gives nectar (attracts pollinators)
Provides potassium
Provides magnesium
Provides sulfur
Attracts pollinators
HOW IT GROWS
SIZE & SPACING
Herbaceous
Height60–200 cm
Spacing60 cm (min 30 cm)
Root depthTaproot
Width30–60 cm
Width figures are rough estimates, the most variable measurement in our data.
AI estimate · accuracy improves as growers contribute corrections.
HOW TO PROPAGATE
Propagate by seed
Difficulty
Establishes in about 1 yr
Self-seeds freely and can spread on its own
Where this comes from
Parsed11 Sept 2026
ConfidenceNot recorded
Photograph Forest & Kim Starr · CC BY 3.0