Plant of the Month – May
0Goodding Verbena,
Southwestern Mock Vervain
Glandularia gooddingii
- Plant Form: Perennial herb
- Water Use: Low
- Mature Size: 1-1.5 ft. tall x 2-3 ft. wide
- Exposure: Full sun, part sun
- Bloom Time: Winter (Feb), Spring (Mar-May), Summer (June)
- Native to: California, SW U.S., Mexico
- Hardiness: Cold hardy to 0°F
A low, mat-forming perennial, Goodding Verbena is a strong nectar producer, attracting butterflies and hummingbirds over its long bloom season. While short-lived, this California native plant reseeds to give you more plants into the future. Tuck this ground cover into rock and wildflower gardens, in courtyards, and along pathways and borders.
Goodding Verbena is a sensation with pollinators like butterflies and hummingbirds, and also with human garden admirers. This southwest native is a strong nectar producer which may bloom most of the year if watered. Its profuse, lilac-colored flowers are grouped in dense, rounded clusters at stem tips, with charming effect. The stems and deeply-divided leaves are very hairy, and spread to form a low mat. This is a short-lived perennial, living only 2-4 years, but when happy, it reseeds on bare ground, providing you with more plants for years. Plants look their best with occasional summer water, about every 2-4 weeks, but let the soil dry out between waterings. They may look a little scruffy in the summer heat. The only care they may take is deadheading spent flowers to ensure more flowering throughout the season—but leave some heads to spread seeds for future plants. Wonderful as an accent, small ground cover, along borders and walkways, in rock and wildflower gardens, courtyards and landscape mounds.
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