Lemon Verbena
Aloysia triphylla (formerly Lippia citriodora) (VERBENACEAE)
Planting and Growing Lemon Verbena
You’ll find everything you need to know to plant and grow lemon verbena in the accompanying table’s tabs:
-
- Flowers, foliage, and nutlike seeds of lemon verbena
- Growing conditions for lemon verbena
- When and where to plant lemon verbena
- How to plant lemon verbena
- How to shape, prune and control growth of lemon verbena
- Watering, fertilizing, and care of lemon verbena
- Landscape uses of lemon verbena
- Pest and disease control for lemon verbena
Growing Lemon Verbena
Several cultivars of fast-growing, upright and branching, deciduous shrubs, 8–10 ft. (2.4–3 m) tall and 5–6 ft. (1.5–1.8 m) wide, with bright green, textured, oval, pointed, finely toothed, fragrant leaves, to 3 in. (75 mm) long, in whorls on the branches.
See also Verbena or Vervain (Verbena spp. and hyb.) and Shrub Verbena or Lantana (Lantana hyb.). Lemon verbena is within the same plant family as true verbena, but shrub verbena or lantana is an unrelated species.
Lemon Verbena Planting and Care Guide
Flowers and Fruit
Inconspicuous cream, white flowers, in spikes or nodding clusters, in summer, with dry, round fruit bearing pairs of nutlike seed in autumn.
Best Climates
U.S.D.A. Plant Hardiness Zones 8–11. Tender. Best in humid, subtropical climates.
Soil Type and Fertility
Moist, well-drained soil. Fertility: Average. 6.0–7.0 pH.
Where and How to Plant
Full sun. Space 3–4 ft. (90–120 cm) apart.
Proper Care
Easy. Keep evenly moist. Fertilize annually in spring. Prune to shape and to promote compact growth. Propagate by cuttings.
About This Species
Good choice for accents, containers, hedges, screens, walls in arid, seaside, tropical gardens. Good as houseplant. Good for drying, tea. Pest and disease resistant.