Propagation Methods For Verbena: Tips On Propagating Verbena Plants

verbena propagation

(Image credit: Fotosmurf03)

last updated 14 September 2022

Useful in cooking and teas and wonderfully fragrant, verbena is a great garden plant to have around. How do you get more of it though? Keep reading to learn more about common propagation methods for verbena plants.

How to Propagate Verbena

Verbena can be propagated both by cuttings and by seed. If you want to be sure you get a genetic copy of the parent plant, you should grow from cuttings, as verbena seeds don’t always grow true to type.

Propagating Verbena Plants from Seed

To collect verbena seeds, allow a few of your plant’s flowers to die off naturally on the stem. The flowers should be replaced by small brown seed pods. Remove the pods by hand and place them in a dark, airy place to dry for about a week. After they’ve dried, gently rub the pods between your fingers to free the small light brown seeds inside. Save the seeds until spring. In the spring, sprinkle the seeds over the top of moist soil – don’t cover them. Keep the soil moist and the seeds should germinate in a few weeks.

How to Propagate Verbena from Cuttings

Verbena plants can also be propagated successfully from cuttings. The best time to take cuttings is in late spring, when they are most likely to root. Summer cuttings are tougher and more likely to survive, but they root much more slowly. Take a cutting that’s 3 inches (8 cm.) in length and has no flowers on it. Remove all but the top one or two sets of leaves. Stick the cutting in a small pot of moist, gritty, well-draining growing medium. Keep the soil moist by covering the whole pot in a plastic bag. After six weeks or so, the cutting should have started to form roots. That’s all there is to verbena propagation. Now you can grow more of this plant so there will be some handy anytime you want for its ornamental beauty or herbal use.

The only child of a horticulturist and an English teacher, Liz Baessler was destined to become a gardening editor. She has been with Gardening Know how since 2015, and a Senior Editor since 2020. She holds a BA in English from Brandeis University and an MA in English from the University of Geneva, Switzerland. After years of gardening in containers and community garden plots, she finally has a backyard of her own, which she is systematically filling with vegetables and flowers.