Aromatic plants are one of those additions that are never too much in a garden or by the window. With their pleasant aroma, they refresh spaces and provide a much more natural environment, as well as keeping some undesirable insects away. The lemon verbena is one of these valuable friends that we can turn to to beautify a space and improve our quality of life.
Growing it is not difficult and that is why it is so popular, especially in South America, where it comes from. If you want to learn how to grow lemon verbena, join us in this Green Ecologist article where you can discover all the lemon verbena care.
Characteristics of lemon verbena
Lemon verbena, lemon verbena, lemon verbena, lemon verbena are its most common names, although in reality by them we refer to the entire genus Aloysia, of the Verbenaceae family, which has around 30 species of shrubs, the most popular for cultivation being the Aloysia citriodora and the Aloysia triphylla, with very similar needs. These are its main characteristics:
- They are very aromatic, deciduous shrubs that can reach heights of up to 5 meters outdoors and with the ideal conditions, although the most common is that they rarely go beyond the 2 meters, being logically much smaller in its cultivation in flowerpot.
- In summer, lemon verbena produces very small white or light purple flowers, which must be removed at the same time they wither so that the plant does not waste energy on them or expose itself to diseases.
- It is very popular in both Spain and South America for its ornamental cultivation, although it is also highly appreciated for its varied medicinal properties as an antioxidant, digestive and relaxant, as well as antispasmodic and carminative.
- In cooking it is also an ingredient widely used in all kinds of sauces, using its chopped and dried leaves, and it is even used in mate, the flagship drink of countries such as Argentina and Uruguay.
- As if all this were not enough, like many other aromatic plants lemon verbena is an excellent way to keep mosquitoes away, being ideal to grow in the margins of the garden or near the doors and windows.
Location for lemon verbena
One of the main requirements of this plant is that it needs a location in full sun, where it receives as much light as possible. As it is a shrub native to subtropical areas, lemon verbena requires a good number of hours of direct incidence per day, so when it is grown indoors it must be done next to very bright windows.
Climate for lemon verbena
The lemon verbena needs high temperatures to develop properly, again due to the climate of its areas of origin. In fact, he appreciates the climates that are warm throughout the year and does not tolerate frost.
If you live in a climate with cold winters, your two options are to grow it in a pot, to be able to keep it indoors during the winter months, or to place it in a protected area of the garden and place thermal wool on it, which will allow the plant to withstand temperatures of down to -15 ° C.
Watering the lemon verbena
The plant can withstand occasional droughts without serious damage, but these will greatly slow down its growth and development. The ideal for it to grow healthy and strong is to maintain a rate of very regular wateringsTrying that the soil does not dry out completely, although leaving enough time between waterings for the excess water to drain.
Usually, between two and three weekly irrigations In the warm months they will be sufficient, although outdoors you may need less depending on the characteristics of the soil. In a pot, it is important that it has drainage holes, and that we remove the excess water from the dish, if it has any, about 10 minutes after watering.
We recommend you read this other post about When to water the plants.
Soil for lemon verbena
The only important aspect as far as the floor is concerned is that it offers a good drainage, since the roots of lemon verbena do not tolerate waterlogging. Otherwise, the plant is very undemanding in this regard.
If you are looking for the ideal soil, focus on one that is drained and with pH between 6.5 and 7.5. In addition, enriching the soil from the beginning with organic compost, such as compost or worm castings, will also help the plant a lot.
Lemon grass fertilizer
As for the compost, it will be enough to add a little more organic or liquid compost to the soil every 15 days during warm monthsSo the plant will grow big and strong.
In these other guides you can learn How to make homemade organic compost for plants, How to make homemade compost and How to make worm castings.
Pruning and multiplication of lemon verbena
Regarding the pruning of the lemon verbena, the most important thing is to remove the flowers as soon as they wither, in addition to removing the branches and leaves in poor condition.
If we talk about their multiplication, it must be taken into account that these shrubs have seeds with little germination capacity, so their cultivation from seeds is not normally recommended, since many fail. Instead, it is much quicker and more practical to take cuttings from a healthy adult plant, which root very easily without even the need for rooting hormone.
If you want to read more articles similar to Caring for lemon verbena, we recommend that you enter our category of Cultivation and care of plants.
