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Great mullein.

 

 

The great mullein with its powerful exterior and legendary healing properties is only a biennial. In the first year of growth those who know notice just the attractive leaf rosette of leaves covered by grey hairs. It collects nutrient supplies into the root system. In the second year a stem, densely set with velvety leaves, rises from the centre of the rosette and pushes upwards; with an abundance of yellow flowers on the upper part. The name of the great mullein is better known than the plant itself.

 

After flowering and the ripening of the seeds the plant dies. Plants have many different tricks to preserve their species. Of the large number of seeds of the great mullein only a few germinate the next spring, while the remainder stay in the soil waiting, if needs be for centuries. On average a powerful mullein plant produces more than a hundred thousand seeds

 

The dry and pebbly habitats of North and West Estonia suit the great mullein, but it is found sporadically in all Estonia. We find it at roadsides, gravel pits, railroad embankments, burnt areas, last year’s felling areas where the forest had been growing for „a hundred years“ ... all the habitats can’t be listed. Spreading by modern means takes place with road sanding as well as gravel transports.