Comfrey?

[Just-Moxie]

Is anyone in here familiar with comfrey? I rec'd 3 roots back in 2011, from another member on a different gardening forum/ They said .."ya can't kill comfrey..." Well, apparently...I did. Somehow.



The first year, they were 4' high, and vigorous. Second year, smaller..but still thriving. Third year, last year....very small. Not really thriving. This year. It is April. Nothing. No little green leaves shooting up through the soil, looking for the sunshine.

I am stumped.

They are in full sun. Southwestern exposure. The soil is sandy, but has been amended considerably, since we bought the place in 2010.

 

[NwMtGardener]

Hmm, well here's a link to a recent-ish discussion we had about the invasive and medicinal properties of comfrey, but I don't think we talked much about what conditions it likes. Um, I don't know what to tell you except maybe a guess that if you've nicely amended the soil it prefers something less...fancy? Like plain old dirt without a lot of nutrients? I have no idea real idea though!

 

[Just-Moxie]

Well, it was originally sand. I have only added some manure, but that was a year ago. It also got the fall leaf mulch. It did so good the first 2 years!!
Now the soil...is back to sand. Hmm.....

 

[thistlebloom]

Everything I've read about it (and that's all I've done is read, never grown) says it wants rich soil. That could be it's problem.
I think with sandy soil you will need a program of incorporating lots and lots of humusy stuff every year. It just disappears so fast in porous soil.

 

[Smart Red]

Is anyone in here familiar with comfrey? I rec'd 3 roots back in 2011, They said .."ya can't kill comfrey..." Well, apparently...I did. Somehow. .

It can be done! I killed off the comfrey I traded for. Of course that was the Summer of Drought in 2012, but sheesh, I thought it was supposed to be invincible.

 

[buckabucka]

We have sand here and the comfrey was seriously invasive! It took years of painstaking work to get it out of our garden. It is growing in the yard and field, but we mow it.

 

[catjac1975]

I wish mine had died. WORST INVASIVE PLANT ON THE PLANET!!!!!!!!

 

[catjac1975]

It's like earth worms chop it up and each piece becomes a big plant.

 

[thistlebloom]

Aren't there a couple of varieties? Would that be part of the difference between thriving and languishing?

 

[baymule]

So....does livestock eat comfrey? Could it be the most marvelous weed-feed ever?