Comfrey is a hardy perennial with litlle bell-shaped flowers in different colours. The flowers can be pink, white, light purple or light yellow. The leaves are large, hairy and light till dark green. Comfrey is used as fodder for animals, for improving the soil and to suffocate other weeds. The leaves of the comfrey are used to make a liquid fertilizer. This fertilizer contains a large amount of nitrogen, potassium and phosphates. This fertilizer is used with plants that need a lot of nitrogen and potassium like e.g. tomatoes, beans and root vegetables. This plant is deciduous in winter. Remove the flowers before they start to wilt, to prevent this rampant plant to take over the whole garden. Hardy perennial. Height: 80 - 100 cm.
Outdoor sowing: april - june
Germination: 10 - 30 days
Germination temp.: 15 - 21°C
Sowing depth: 5 - 6 mm
Plant distance: 30 - 40 cm
Distance of rows: 50 - 70 cm
Plant position: sunny - half shade
Flowering period: july till october
Some people say that stratification of these seeds helps the germination. Put the seeds in their package for about 2 weeks in the fridge. Let the seeds get to roomtemperature before sowing them.
Sow outdoors from april on, on a sunny, slightly moist spot with some shade. Sow the seeds about 5 mm deep and rake them in the soil and press them in gently. Sow the seeds in a secluded spot of your garden, to prevent the comfrey of overgrowing and suffocating other plants. Germination can take a while, but no longer than 30 days.
Thin the seedlings, when they're large enough to handle, to about 30 - 40 cm apart. Remove the flowers to prevent the reseeding of the comfrey and it also helps the plant with making more leaves. These leaves can be used to make a liquid fertilizer. Wear gloves when handling these plants because the hares on this plants can cause skin irritations.
