Great willowherb - Epilobium hirsutum

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Great willowherb - Epilobium hirsutum
© Dr Chris Gibson/English Nature

Great willowherb is a tall plant covered in soft downy hair. It has deep purple-pink flowers with creamy, arched stigma standing proudly from the top of the stems. The opposite, lance-shaped leaves clasp the stem. In the wild it is found along river banks and in marshy areas, so it is an ideal plant for a large bog garden, although it needs keeping in careful check. This is a rich provider of pollen and nectar for bees.

The best known vernacular name is 'codlins and cream', a codlin or codling being a variety of apple. The cream and pink petals are presumably the origin of this.

Animals

Bees and wasps, Elephant hawk-moth

Foliage	Green
Flower	Pink, July to August
Moisture	(Wet)
Sunlight	(Full sun to Part-shade)
Origin	Native