If you haven’t tried growing ‘Purple Homestead’ Verbena in your home garden you really should! I’ve used this purple flowering perennial in three places so far and can think of many more locations I would like to see them. ‘Purple Homestead’ has found homes in our landscape in the mailbox garden, our front garden, and our birdbath garden. ‘Purple Homestead’ verbena is a low sprawling ground cover perennial that blooms profusely with purple blossoms during the summer and it’s also easy to propagate!
Growing Purple Homestead Verbena
My only complaint about this summer blooming perennial is its tendency to disappear over the winter. Sometimes it comes back and other times it doesn’t. Often Purple Homestead verbena will die back completely from the main plant and re-sprout from a different location along the plant where it rooted previously. Perhaps the verbena wants to travel?
As long as it comes back I don’t mind. This verbena doesn’t like wet winter locations and needs a well drained area with plenty of sunshine. If you give it the right conditions it will stay in good shape for the following spring and summer.
Keep it Away from Weeds
Verbena also doesn’t like competition. It will sprawl all around clumping perennials but has trouble competing against fast growing weeds. Keep the areas weeded around your verbena to keep it growing good.
Purple Homestead Verbena Companion Plants
Verbena looks great with a number of companion plants. In the picture below I have it planted with yellow coreopsis and coneflower. It grows best as a ground cover so plant verbena toward the front of your beds with taller perennials as a backdrop.
Propagating Purple Homestead Verbena
To sustain your verbenas over long periods consider propagating a few extras from cuttings.
Propagating Verbena in Water:
Take a two node or more cutting and drop it in water. Wait a few days for roots to form then pot it up. It doesn’t take long for roots to form, you would have rooting within a week. Purple Homestead verbena roots easily in water and rooting hormone is not necessary to use for verbena.
Or if you want to make many, many, many more verbenas (and why wouldn’t you?) try internodal cuttings with only a single leaf node on the cutting. Leave two small leaves on the cutting and treat it with rooting hormone then stick it in your rooting medium. Very soon you will have new verbenas!
All I need to do now is trim the pieces below the root and pot up my new verbena.
You Don’t Have to Propagate Verbena in Just Water
Using water to propagate verbenas is not the only way to do it. In fact it may be even EASIER to stick the cuttings in a pot of good soil. Keep the cuttings moist but not drenched and roots should form in the soil. The advantage to rooting in soil over rooting in water is that the roots immediately can take in the nutrients from the soil. Also since they are in the darkness of the soil the roots will form faster.
Keep Taking Cuttings to Keep Verbena Growing
Verbenas are extremely easy to root and your success rate should be high. Each fall I prepare a few rooted cuttings to overwinter in pots in the garage so that should one of my verbenas depart for that great garden in the sky I’ll have a replacement ready to go.
Visit the Plant Propagation Resources Page for equipment and supplies that may help you in growing new plants from cuttings.
Verbenas layer very easily so if you go out to examine your plant you may find new roots along its stem. If it does then you can sever the rooted section away from the main plant and move it to a new location.
And if you think verbena sounds easy, you should try propagating coleus.
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I've been dividing mine this year. This plant is still blooming, a wonderful plant.
I've been meaning to add this to the garden for sometime. Thanks for the reminder Dave & the tips on making more. 😉
Thanks for the tips to propagate the verbena. I have a plant that I want to make more for other places in my garden. Coleus not too plentiful in my immediate area.
I've been getting great geraniums for 2.00. All colors. I think that's a good bargain.
Love this plant, especially in our public village gardens. The profuse low sprawling blooms are perfect for draping areas with curbs.
I think I'll start callin you Prince Propagator. ;~)