Veronica beccabunga
Brooklime
Common names: European speedwell
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Spacing
- 20 cm, rows 30 cm
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Sowing
- Mar, Apr, May, Sep
- Harvest
- Apr–Sep
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −15 °C
- Water need
- High
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Description
Veronica beccabunga, commonly known as brooklime, is a native wild herb that grows along the edges of streams, springs, and ponds, forming lush green carpets. From May to late summer it produces small, bright blue flowers with a pale eye that attract bees and hoverflies. The fleshy, glossy leaves taste mild and slightly peppery, suitable for raw salads or as an addition to quark and herb butter. It thrives only in clean, flowing or slowly standing water; therefore it should be collected from unpolluted waters and washed thoroughly, as it can harbor the small waterweed Lemna minor in stagnant or polluted waters.
Care instructions
Veronica beccabunga requires constantly moist roots: a spot in shallow water, at the pond edge, or in a wet garden bed with a stream works best. Plant with ample spacing of 20 to 30 cm, as it spreads quickly via creeping, rooting shoots and forms dense stands. Regularly harvest the shoot tips to encourage bushy regrowth and keep the plant compact. It is winter-hardy, retreating during cold winters and reliably resprouting from the rootstock in spring. A sunny to partially shaded spot by water is sufficient; additional fertilisation is usually unnecessary.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–May, Sep
HarvestApr–Sep
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 8 °C, ideally 15 °C
- Days to sprout
- 14 to 28 days
- Light
- Needs light to sprout
- Sowing depth
- Press in, don't cover
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
moist, humus-rich, nutrient-rich, lime-loving
Brooklime grows best with its feet in the water or in permanently wet, nutrient-rich soil at the edge of a pond or stream. Humus-rich, slightly chalky ground suits it particularly well, and it forgives waterlogged spots without any problem. On dry or sandy ground it grows only hesitantly and quickly becomes stunted.
Feeding
Medium feeder
Months
Apr–Jun
As a marginal and wild plant, brooklime needs hardly any extra feeding, as long as the water is nutrient-rich enough. Some mature compost given directly to the bankside bed in spring is perfectly enough. In the pond itself, the natural supply of nutrients from fish or autumn leaves is usually sufficient.
Overwintering
Brooklime is hardy and survives even severe frosts without problems, as long as the roots do not freeze through completely. At the pond edge or in the shallow-water zone, the natural frost protection from the water is usually enough. In a container at the edge, you should provide extra protection, for example by sinking it into the frost-free part of the water.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
- Cuttings
- Division
The easiest way to propagate brooklime is from cuttings, because the creeping shoots root by themselves at the leaf nodes. Cut off a piece of shoot and simply set it into moist substrate or directly into shallow water. Division of older clumps in spring also works reliably. Sowing is possible, but takes longer until the first harvest and is used less often.
For your garden
Grow Brooklime yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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