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Veronicastrum virginicum
Also called Blackroot, Bowman's Root, Tall Speedwell, Virginia Culver's Root
Culver's root is a tall, upright herbaceous perennial native to eastern North America, grown for its candelabra-like spikes of white flowers in summer. It is easy and adaptable, and it forms a neat clump that rarely needs staking.
Veronicastrum virginicum, or Culver's root, is a species of flowering plant in the plantain family, Plantaginaceae. It is native to the eastern United States and south-eastern Canada. Growing to 200 cm (79 in) tall by 45 cm (18 in) broad, it is an erect herbaceous perennial with slender racemes of white or occasionally pink or purple flowers in summer.
Veronicastrum virginicum is cultivated as an ornamental for temperate gardens in the Eastern and Central United States around its native range. Most native plant nurseries commonly sell this easy and adaptable perennial. Even some conventional nurseries sell this plant, though it is not common yet in American landscapes and gardens. It is fully hardy down to at least −20 °C (−4 °F), and grows in full sun to part shade and any moist, well-drained soil. It is easy to dig up, divide, and reset like a good number of standard perennials if they get too large or crowded. It stays as an upright clump and does not spread far. Plants rarely need staking; however, older clumps may require this. It can be pruned down in late May or dug up, divided, and reset. This plant does do some self-sowing with its tiny seed.
In the UK the cultivars 'Album', with white flowers, and 'Lavendelturm', with lilac flowers, have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Veronicastrum virginicum is found from southern Maine to northwest Florida to northern Louisiana up through Minnesota and somewhat north of the Canada–US border. Culver's root is frequently found in wet to wet-mesic prairies and sometimes moist upland sites. It is also found in a good number of prairie or native meadow restorations.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Veronicastrum virginicum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
