Verbena × hybrida (Verbena × hybrida)
Verbena hybrida is an herbaceous flowering plant, with cultivated forms used as ornamental bedding plants. Sources describe its life cycle differently: it is perennial, while in cultivation where it is not cold-hardy it is also often grown as a half-hardy annual bedding plant.
Overview
Verbena hybrida is an herbaceous flowering plant, with cultivated forms used as ornamental bedding plants. Sources describe its life cycle differently: it is perennial, while in cultivation where it is not cold-hardy it is also often grown as a half-hardy annual bedding plant.
Origin and habitat
Records from Colombia list Verbena hybrida as non-native, and it is also listed as introduced in the contiguous United States; global records show a subcosmopolitan distribution and widespread cultivation, which do not establish its native range. A source reports it from the Andean region of Colombia while also listing it as a cultivated non-native plant.
Characteristics
The leaves are reported to be generally opposite and simple, and many Verbena species have hairy leaves. The flowers are reported to be small, five-petaled, and usually densely borne; blue is common within the genus, while white, pink, and purple also occur, especially among cultivated varieties.
Light
Verbena hybrida is reported to grow in full sun to partial sun.
Watering
Verbena hybrida is reported to be drought tolerant.
Growing medium and mounting
Verbena hybrida is reported to grow in ordinary, well-drained soil.
Propagation
Cultivated Verbena are generally reported to be propagated from seed.
Common problems
Cultivated Verbena are reported to sometimes host the sweetpotato whitefly (Bemisia tabaci), potentially helping this pest spread to other crops. Verbena has known pathogens and associated diseases, but the source does not provide specific disease names that can be individually attributed to this species. Verbena hybrida is reported to be frost-sensitive and is therefore grown in some areas as a half-hardy annual bedding plant.
Identification
Verbena hybrida is a commonly cultivated hybrid verbena, an herbaceous ornamental plant that is not frost-hardy.
Photos
Sources
- GBIF Backbone: Verbena × hybrida Groenland & Rümpler — CC BY 4.0 · link
- Wikipedia (en, genus): Verbena — CC BY-SA 4.0 · link
- GBIF descriptions: Lista de especies de plantas exóticas y trasplantadas de Colombia; Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de — per dataset · link
- USDA PLANTS Database: Verbena hybrida — Public domain (US Government work) · link