Artemisia vulgaris
Mugwort
Common names: Common mugwort, Felon herb
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Spacing
- 60 cm, rows 70 cm
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Sowing
- Mar–May
- Harvest
- Jul–Sep
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −25 °C
- Water need
- Low
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Description
Artemisia vulgaris is a native perennial shrub that thrives along roadsides, fences, and garden borders, quickly forming large clumps. The leaves are dark green on the upper surface and silvery‑hairy underneath. The flowers are inconspicuous, appearing in loose panicles. In the home garden it is best known as a classic seasoning for fatty roasts such as goose or duck.
Care instructions
Plant mugwort in a sunny to partially shaded spot with well‑drained soil; it tolerates dry, sandy soil and will become sparse on overly fertile earth. Water only during extended dry spells, as the plant copes well with natural rainfall. Cut back the stems close to the ground in late autumn or early spring to encourage dense, compact growth the following year. Because it spreads via rhizomes, consider a root barrier or annual thinning if you do not want it to overrun the entire garden edge. Harvest the shoot tips just before flowering, around late July (week 30) to early August (week 31), when the aroma is strongest.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–May
HarvestJul–Sep
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 10 °C, ideally 18 °C
- Days to sprout
- 10 to 21 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
well-drained, lean, dry, lime-loving
Mugwort is undemanding and prefers well-drained, rather lean soil. Soil that is too rich and heavy only encourages soft growth with no yield of aroma. A sunny, warm spot with a little lime in the soil suits it well, though it copes just as well with moist sites.
Feeding
Light feeder
As a robust wild perennial, mugwort needs practically no feeding. Some mature compost in spring is perfectly enough; more would tend to weaken its aroma. On lean sites it grows healthier and more aromatic than in well-supplied beds.
Overwintering
Mugwort is hardy and survives frost in the bed without protection. The above-ground shoots die back in autumn, and in spring the perennial sprouts anew from the rootstock. Cutting back to just above the ground in late autumn or early spring keeps the plant compact.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
- Cuttings
- Division
Sowing works from mid-April (week 16), directly in the open ground or raised on the windowsill; press the fine seeds down lightly rather than covering them. Cuttings from young shoots can be taken in early summer and root reliably. You can divide established clumps in spring or autumn, which rejuvenates the plant and gives you new specimens for other corners of the bed straight away.
Companion planting
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Mugwort yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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