– Biennial plant that produces a rosette of large, thick, fuzzy leaves the first year and a single stout erect stem 2-feet tall to 6-feet tall the second year. – Leaves are light green and very wooly.

Look along roadsides or any disturbed areas with some open ground, and you are likely to see common mullein, blooming huge spikes of cheery yellow flowers. We have some growing in the bare patches ...

One sure sign of midsummer is the popping up of tall spikes along highways, byways, fields and farmlands. For some reason, maybe it's because they have no equivalent of similar stature, I always ...

Occasionally I find I have random plants popping up in my flower beds. These plants make an appearance despite me not planting them there. I call these my “gifts from the birds.” Let’s face it, seeds ...

Roman legionnaires used mullein as a torch. They dipped the tall, spear-shaped flower stalks in tallow to light their billets. The thick down of Torch Weed is still used to make candle wicks in parts ...

Garden Gems: Giant silver mullein makes a statement in the low-water garden with unusual flower stalks and silvery foliage. Ellen Zagory This is one part in a weekly series featuring the UC Davis ...

Fast Forager Nicole Zempel introduces us to the medicinal power of mullein. Fast Forager Nicole Zempel introduces us to the medicinal power of mullein for help with asthma and other breathing issues.

I now know you can’t judge a book by its cover. I almost managed to overlook my review copy of “Backyard Medicine”by Julie Bruton-Seal and Matthew Seal (Skyhorse Publishing, 2009); however, one ...