It can handle damp areas and dry areas, so you may want to consider growing it in locations where you simply can’t get anything else to grow.Ĭomfrey grows easily in U.S. In fact, in high heat areas, some afternoon shade will prevent the plants from cooking in the hot sun. Just remember that wherever you plant comfrey, it is likely to grow just about forever.Ĭomfrey grows best in full sun but it will tolerate some shade. It will also act as a grass barrier to keep grass from overtaking your garden borders. This will prevent comfrey from quickly spreading and taking over your garden but still keep it accessible to chop and drop as mulch. However, do not plant them inside the garden, instead, plant them outside the garden barrier. One suggestion for a great location to grow comfrey is as a border to your gardens or flower beds. For this reason, you probably do not want to grow comfrey directly in your vegetable garden. It can spread aggressively and become an invasive weed, so choose your location carefully. Comfrey will regrow from even the tiniest left behind root, so once it is planted, it is nearly impossible to get rid of. Selecting the right location is one of the most important factors in growing it. Comfrey can spread through seeds or broken pieces of root. It will continue to grow even while it is flowering.Īfter frost, the leaves will die back and the plant will go dormant again until spring. It produces bell-shaped flowers that are usually a creamy yellow, but some cultivars are available in other colors such as purple, red, or blue. Comfrey will flower from late spring through the first frost. By late spring, the plant should be well over a foot tall with large leaves and hairy stems. It is not recommended to be ingested at all.Ĭomfrey will begin growing from the crown of last year’s plant in early spring. It is thought to cause liver toxicity and vein blockage. Toxicity: The United States FDA (Food and Drug Administration) removed comfrey products from the market in the 2000s because of its possible toxicity.It can handle temperatures as low as -40 degrees F through 120 degrees F. hardiness zones 3 through 9 but it will grow almost anywhere. Hardiness: Comfrey will grow best in U.S.Growing season: Comfrey can be planted any time the soil is warm enough to be worked.For all these reasons, comfrey is a great addition to your garden. When the plant dies, or is chopped and dropped to use as mulch, the nutrients return to the soil where your garden plants can access them easier.īest of all, it is easy to grow, even in shady areas. Some of your livestock will happily munch away on this plant, particularly chickens and pigs.Ĭomfrey is called a nutrient accumulator because its deep tap root mines nutrients well beneath the surface of the soil, and brings them up with the plant. Some herbalists even make a healing salve out of comfrey. Better yet, it can be used as a green mulch, and it will improve the quality of your soil.Ĭomfrey can be made into a compost tea which is beneficial for fertilizing your garden. Comfrey attracts a number of different pollinators with its beautiful flowers and provides habitat for beneficial insects. Here on the West Coast Comfrey does not seem to spread outside of the garden.Comfrey is a permaculture gardener’s best friend because it has a multitude of uses. There is widely found in meadows and waste places. Take care in planting Common Comfrey as it is considered an invasive plant in the eastern U.S. It is easily adaptable to many soils, but prefers those which are moist and fertile. Grow Common Comfrey in full sun or partial shade in hot climates. Repeated ingestion can lead to serious liver damage and death. ![]() Roots appear to be more toxic than stems and leaves. Also, new plants can be propagated by dividing the roots of established plants.Īll parts of common comfrey contain toxic alkaloids. Flower color depends on variety and can be either pink fading to blue, white or creamy yellow. They form in distinctive curled clusters having an appearance similar to that of a scorpion's tail. Flowers are bell shaped and either yellow or blue. While they are still bristly they lack the petioles as seen on the lower portions of the plants.įlowers are borne on 2’-3’ tall flowering stems. ![]() Towards the top of the plant the leaves are smaller. It bears bristly lower leaves, up to 12 inches long, that are attached to winged leaf stalks (petioles) that emerge from the base of the plant. This herbaceous perennial can grow to 5’ in both height and width at maturity. It is rich in calcium, potassium, phosphorus, vitamins and trace elements. Description Common Comfrey is best known as culinary herb used to make teas and poultices out of its leaves.
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