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Caprifoliaceae
Red Valerian
Centranthus ruber
Readiness, accommodating disposition.
- Family
- Caprifoliaceae
- Genus
- Centranthus
- Native to
- Mediterranean Europe
- Bloom season
- Spring, Summer, Fall
- Type
- Perennial
- Height
- 60–90 cm (2–3 ft)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Poor, well-drained, alkaline
- Water
- Low
- Hardiness
- 5–8
- Lifespan
- Long-lived perennial
Did you know
- Also called 'Jupiter's Beard' and 'kiss-me-quick,' it's the iconic flower seen growing out of crumbling stone walls all over Provence, Tuscany, and Cornish villages.
- The plant is so fond of mortar and limestone that it was nicknamed 'pretty Betsy' in Victorian England, where it colonized castle ruins faster than the Romans could lose them.
- It is not a true valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and lacks the famous sedative properties—but its leaves are eaten in French and Italian salads as 'mache' substitutes.
- A single plant can drop hundreds of feathery, parachute-equipped seeds that drift on the breeze like dandelion clocks—it's how it conquers stonework.
- Hawkmoths are its main pollinators in Europe, hovering at dusk to drink nectar from the unusually long, narrow floral spurs.
Color meanings
0
readiness
1
adaptability
2
Mediterranean charm