Spiked rampion

How to recognise it

Growth form

Upright perennial of 30–80 cm, with an unbranched stem and a rosette of basal leaves.

Leaf

Basal leaves heart-shaped to oval, doubly scalloped, on long stalks. Stem leaves smaller, narrower and stalkless higher up.

Flower

Dense, cylindrical spike of 3–8 cm with curved, tubular, creamy white to yellowish-white flowers and protruding styles with two stigmas. Flowers from May to July.

Fruit/Seed

Small capsules that open by pores and contain many fine seeds; the spike lengthens in fruit.

Roots

A fleshy, thickened root, like a small turnip.

Confusion with

Black rampion (Phyteuma nigrum) has dark violet-blue flowers; where the two grow together, hybrids with pale blue flowers sometimes occur. Round-headed rampion (Phyteuma orbiculare) has blue, globular heads and grows in chalk grassland.

Flowering: May–July · Pruning: September

Why grow it?

• One of the loveliest flowers of the Walloon broadleaved woods, with a striking creamy white flower spike in May–July.
• Bumblebees, solitary bees and hoverflies visit the flowers for nectar and pollen.
• A characteristic species of old, rich deciduous woodland, showing that a woodland floor has been left undisturbed for a long time.
• Ideal for a shady wildlife garden under deciduous trees, where it flowers after the spring bulbs and woodland flowers.
• The fleshy root and young leaves were once eaten as a vegetable in some regions.

Spiked rampion: where does it grow best?

• In the wild in deciduous woodland, woods on slopes, along woodland streams and at woodland edges, especially under beech, oak and hornbeam.
• Partial to full shade; in full sun it dries out.
• Humus-rich, moist, loamy soil, neutral to slightly acid, that does not dry out in summer.
• In the garden: in a shady border or woodland garden under deciduous trees, or on the north side of a hedge.

Goes well with

• Wood anemone: White spring flowers in March–April, before the rampion gets going.
• Sweet woodruff: A fragrant, white-flowered ground cover of the same woodland floor.
• Solomon’s-seal: Arching stems with white bells in May, for the same shade.
• Yellow archangel: Yellow lipped flowers for bumblebees in spring, under deciduous trees.
• Columbine: Blue to violet flowers at the woodland edge, at the same time.

Spiked rampion: when and how to plant it?

1. Buy plants from a native plant nursery; never dig them up in the woods.
2. Plant in March–April or September–October in groups of 3–5, 25–30 cm apart.
3. Work some leaf mould into the soil: it wants a humus-rich, moist soil as in a wood.
4. You can also sow it: put fresh seed in pots outdoors in autumn. The seed needs winter cold to germinate in spring.
5. Sow the fine seed thinly, press it in and do not cover it. Grow the seedlings on in pots for the first year and plant them out in autumn.
6. Water until the plants are established and protect the young shoots from slugs in spring.

Care

Water

In the first year during dry spells. After that not needed in a moist, shady spot.

Feeding

Not needed; a layer of leaf mould in autumn is enough.

Leaf litter

Leave fallen leaves where they lie: they keep the soil moist and humus-rich, as in a wood.

Peace and quiet

It dislikes disturbance. Do not rake or dig around the plant, to spare the fleshy root.

Letting it seed

Leave the flowering stems until the seed is ripe; this way it gently self-seeds over the years.

Tip: Plant it in a small group under a deciduous tree and leave the fallen leaves in place: this recreates a woodland floor, where it will self-seed after a few years.

Pruning and mowing

Pruning months: September.

When: In September, when the seed is ripe, or leave the stems standing until spring.

How:

• Do not cut off faded spikes straight away: let them set seed first.
• In September cut the withered stems back to just above the ground, or leave them as shelter for insects.
• Do not tidy around the plant: the leaf rosette dies back by itself under the leaf litter in winter.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

In September–October put fresh seed in pots outdoors; it germinates after winter. Seedlings often only flower after two years.

Division

Possible with older clumps in early spring, but not always successful: the fleshy root breaks easily. Lift a generous root ball.

Spiked rampion: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −25 °C.

• The top growth dies back in autumn; the fleshy root overwinters in the soil.
• Fully hardy.
• Fallen leaves form a natural blanket that protects the roots and feeds the soil.

Diseases and pests

• Slugs: They eat young shoots and leaves in spring. Check in the evening and attract hedgehogs, toads and ground beetles with a wild corner.
• Drought: In a sunny, dry garden it languishes. Choose a moist spot in partial shade and mulch with leaf mould.
• Patience: Seedlings grow slowly and often only flower after two years. So start preferably with nursery plants.
• Disappearing after digging: Digging or deep raking damages the root. Leave the soil around the plant undisturbed.

Through the year

• March: Plant. New rosettes appear; watch out for slugs.
• April: The flowering stems grow. Keep slugs away.
• May: Flowering begins.
• June: Full flower, with bumblebees visiting.
• July: Last flowers. Seed sets.
• September: Collect seed and sow it in pots outdoors. Cut back stems or leave them. Plant.
• October: Plant. Spread leaf mould around the plants.
• November: Leave fallen leaves where they lie.

Did you know?

• The flowers are cleverly built: the petal tips stay joined at the top and form a tube in which the style pushes the pollen out. Only afterwards does the tube split open and the two stigmas spread, which makes self-pollination difficult.
• The name rampion, like the Dutch rapunzel, goes back to the Latin rapum, ‘turnip’, after the fleshy root.
• Phyteuma comes from the Greek phyteuma, ‘plant’ or ‘that which is planted’.