Mullein
Verbascum thapsus
Medicinal Plants Difficulty: Very Easy
📖 About this plant
Mullein is a tall, striking biennial with fuzzy gray-green leaves and a towering flower spike. Traditionally used as a respiratory remedy, its leaves are brewed into tea for coughs, bronchitis, and sore throats, while the flowers make a soothing ear oil.
🧑🌾 Care requirements
☀️
Light
Full sun (6-8 hrs)
💧
Water
Every 1-2 weeks
💨
Humidity
Low to moderate (30-50%)
🌡️
Temperature
5-30°C
🪴
Soil
Well-drained sandy or gravelly loam; tolerates poor, dry soils; pH 6.0-7.5
🧪
Fertilizer
Generally not needed — thrives in poor soils; avoid rich soils which cause floppy growth
🌐 Common Names
HI
Hindi
मल्लो
BN
Bengali
মুলেইন
MR
Marathi
मल्लून
TE
Telugu
మల్లెయిన్
TA
Tamil
முல்லேன்
GU
Gujarati
મલ્લેઇન
UR
Urdu
ملین
KN
Kannada
ಮಲ್ಲೇನ್
OR
Odia
ମଲେନ୍
ML
Malayalam
മുള്ളെയിൻ
PA
Punjabi
ਮੱਲੇਨ
AS
Assamese
মালেইন
📋 Plant facts
- 🌍 Origin
- Europe, Asia, North Africa; naturalized in North America
- 📏 Max height
- 120-200 cm
- 📐 Spread
- 30-60 cm
- 🕰️ Bloom time
- Summer
- 🎨 Bloom color
- Yellow
- 🍃 Foliage color
- Gray-Green
- ⏳ Lifespan
- Biennial
- 📈 Growth rate
- Moderate
- ☠️ Toxicity
- Non-toxic; fine hairs on leaves can irritate skin — use gloves when handling
- 🌱 Propagation
- Seed sowing in spring or autumn; self-seeds prolifically; biennial lifecycle
🛡️ Health & Safety
🐾 Pet safe
✅ Non-toxic
Non-toxic; fine hairs on leaves can irritate skin — use gloves when handling
Common issues
- Powdery mildew on leaves
- Spider mites
- Root rot in wet soil
- Self-seeds prolifically
💡 Care tips
- Tall fuzzy flower spikes reach 6 feet or more
- Leaves are traditionally used in herbal cough remedies
- Biennial that produces a rosette the first year then flowers
- Self-seeds freely and naturalizes easily in open areas
🪴 Add to My Plants
One click — added instantly. Watering every 11 days, fertilizing every 30 days.
