Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Lamiales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Verbascum thapsus ssp. thapsus
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Verbascum at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Verbascum thapsus
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America
Verbascum thapsus ssp. thapsus
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 166-12-003:
Verbascum thapsus FAMILY Scrophulariaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Verbascum thapsus
COMMON NAME:
Woolly Mullein, Common Mullein, Flannel-plant, Velvet-plant
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_veth_001_lvd
)
Gill Newberry gn04_v_thapsis_plant
April
)
JK Marlow jkm0404g_37
April Haywood County NC
Roadside
Leaves densely woolly hairy, in a basal rosette & alternate spiral on stem, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm150607_260
June McDowell County? NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
Basal and lower stem leaves with blades basally attenuate, per Weakley's Flora (2020).
)
Gill Newberry gn07_v_thapsis_flowers
July
Inflorescence dense and spike-like (at least initially), per Weakley's Flora.
)
Gill Newberry gn07_v_thapsus_habitat
July
Middle to upper stem leaves sessile, decurrent on the stem to the next leaf, per Weakley's Flora (2020).
)
JK Marlow jkm0507e_01
July Fayette County WV
Roadside
)
JK Marlow jkm060723_017
July Transylvania County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
Corolla yellow and 5-lobed, 15-25mm wide, within woolly 5-lobed sepals, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
COMPARE
Clasping Mullein, Moth Mullein, Wand Mullein, and Woolly Mullein
)
JK Marlow jkm140724_093
July Greenville County SC
Swamp Rabbit Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm220722_9281
July Greenville County SC
Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area
Leaves sessile, decurrent down the stem to the next leaf, per Weakley's Flora.
)
Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_verbascum_thapsus_10
July
)
Tim Spira tpsvthapsus
July
)
Keith Bradley kab_v_thapsus_2392
August Madison County VA
Shenandoah National Park
)
JK Marlow jkm210914_3682
September Greenville County SC
Tall Pines Wildlife Management Area
)
JK Marlow jkm210914_3710
September Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm111106_266
November Jackson County NC
Roadside
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmverbascum_thapsus
Month Unknown
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Verbascum thapsus ssp. thapsus
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Verbascum thapsus
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America
Verbascum thapsus ssp. thapsus
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 166-12-003:
Verbascum thapsus
FAMILY
Scrophulariaceae
INCLUDED WITHIN
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Verbascum thapsus
1595
Forb
Biennial
Habitat: Fields, roadsides, disturbed areas, sometimes weedy on rock outcrops, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: Europe
Common
Click here to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
This plant may be causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2006
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2013
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2009
LEAVES:
Simple
Basal rosette & alternate
Stem leaves sessile
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Yellow
Bisexual
Weakly bilaterally symmetrical
5 sepals
5-parted 2-lipped rotate corolla
5 fertile exserted stamens
Superior ovary
Inflorescence a spike
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Capsule
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p192
- Great Smoky Mountains Wildflowers (Campbell, Hutson, Sharp, & Hutson, 1962) p084
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p396
- Invasive Plants, Guide to Identification, Impacts and Control (Kaufman & Kaufman, 2007) p270
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p188
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p222
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p209
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p086
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p224
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p334
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p248
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p291
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p464
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p152
- Weeds of Southern Turfgrasses (Murphy et al., 1992) p186