Erysimum Bedder Vulcan - Wallflower

Like all the varieties in the Bedder series, Erysimum Bedder Vulcan Brown is a semi-dwarf plant with vibrant flowers, perfect for brightening up the pastel hues of spring. It is adorned with large, fragrant flowers in a velvety reddish-brown to purple colour, gathered in dense spikes. The flowering lasts 2 to 3 months, from March to May, sometimes starting in February in mild climates. It will work wonders in sunny borders, rockeries, or on banks. It can even be grown in pots on a balcony or patio. This biennial plant is actually a short-lived perennial. It is not very hardy, but it is easy to grow in the sun, in well-drained soil. It will even grow in poor and chalky soil.

Erysimum cheiri, also known as Cheiranthus cheiri, belongs to the Brassicaceae family. It is native to southern Europe, and is perfectly adapted to dry and chalky soils. This short-lived perennial is not very hardy. It is most often cultivated as a biennial or annual.

This variety is part of a horticultural series selected for its compact and branching habit, and its long multicoloured spring flowering. It quickly forms upright, bushy and compact clumps, with woody bases, covered with lanceolate leaves that are shaped like swords. The foliage is brownish-purple to bronze, with a satin-like appearance. Flowering begins in March and extends until the beginning of summer. In mild climates, and provided that it is cut back at the end of the season, this plant will show itself to be perennial (short-lived) and will even flower in winter. The 4-petalled flowers, 5 to 6cm (2in) wide, are fragrant in hot weather. They are gathered in racemes at the top of leafy stems 35cm (14in) tall. They are popular with pollinating insects that find one of the first nectars of spring at the bottom of their corollas.

Appreciated in gardens for its ease of cultivation and its tendency to self-seed in the most unlikely places, wallflowers and their cultivars are excellent rock garden plants, which thrive even in somewhat difficult soils. They also work well within walls. These plants work wonders in the border of a flower bed, in the company of love-in-a-mist, Californian poppies, and perennial flax, or in a bed with taller plants like toadflaxes, mulleins, or gauras, which are just as undemanding. It can also be placed in a pot on a patio or balcony, or near a doorway, to fully enjoy its generous flowering.

Please be aware that our young plug plants are professional products reserved for experienced gardeners. Upon receipt, transplant them as soon as possible in pots and containers, or directly in flower beds.