WildBristol.uk - Discovering Wildlife in Bristol

Widespread but uncommon throughout the South and scattered elsewhere. Habitat includes: Open, bare, free-draining places with calcareous soils such as rough grassland, scrub, roadside verges, sheltered coastal cliffs, rock outcrops, quarries, gravel-pits, stream-sides, woodland borders, walls, pavements, wasteland etc. Flowers: July to September. Growing habit: Perennial. Height: Up to 150 cm. Other names include: Common Vervain, Common Verbena, Simpler's Joy, Holy Herb, Mosquito Plant, Wild Hyssop, Blue Vervain. Has been growing around human settlements since the Neolithic, and was widely cultivated in medieval gardens. It has declined massively in East Anglia.