ON THIS PLANT
Valerian (Valeriana officinalis, Caprifoliaceae) is a perennial flowering plant native to Europe and Asia. In the summer when the mature plant may have a height of 1.5 metres (5 feet), it bears sweetly scented pink or white flowers that attract many fly species, especially hoverflies of the genus Eristalis. It is consumed as food by the larvae of some Lepidoptera (butterfly and moth) species, including the grey pug. Crude extract of valerian root may have sedative and anxiolytic effects, and is commonly sold in dietary supplement capsules to promote sleep, but there is insufficient clinical evidence that it is effective for this purpose. Its roots and leaves cause a catnip-like response in cats.
CHARACTERISTICS
Botanical profile.
- Plant Type
- Herb
- Life Cycle
- Perennial, Annual
- Genus
- Valeriana
- Family
- Caprifoliaceae
- Hardiness Zone
- 4-9
- Mature Height
- 1.52 m
- Mature Spread
- 46 cm to 91 cm
- Leaf Color
- Green
- Leaf Type
- Deciduous
- Flower Color
- Pink, White
- Flower Size
- 0.51 cm
- Bloom Time
- Late spring, Early summer, Mid summer
- Planting Time
- Spring
- Harvest Time
- Mid summer
- Native Area
- Turkey, Sweden, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Armenia, Poland, Greece, Belarus, Ukraine, China, Russia, Lithuania, Hungary, Germany, Portugal, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Japan, Estonia, Mongolia, Koppen, Iran, Albania, Azerbaijan, South Korea, Latvia, France
ALSO KNOWN AS
Other names.
en Garden-heliotrope en Common valerian en Valerian en Garden Valerian en Allheal en European Valerian en Great wild valerian en Common Heliotrope en Ārstniecības Balderjānis (LVL) en European Heliotrope ru Валерьянка
