Acidic / Chalky / Alkaline / Clay / Heavy / Moist / Well Drained / Light / Sandy
Teasel, Dispacus fullonum, makes a fine, architectural garden plant. Tight, prickly rosettes yield tall stems of spiny purple flowerheads in summer. It's perfect for growing at the back of a sunny border, in cottage garden schemes and also at the pond edge. The flowers are extremely attractive to bees and butterflies, and the foliage is a magnet for aphids, which in turn attract ladybirds. If left to seed, the brown seedheads are a magnet for goldfinches, but also work well in dried flower arrangements.
Grow Dispacus fullonum in moist or moist but well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade. Biennial, sow seed in summer to encourage flowering the following year. It self-seeds readily.
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Dipsacus and wildlife
Dipsacus is known for attracting bees, beneficial insects, birds, butterflies/moths and other pollinators. It is a caterpillar food plant, has nectar/pollen rich flowers, provides shelter and habitat and has seeds for birds.
