Echium vulgare aka Viper's Bugloss

Echium vulgare belongs to the borage family, Boraginaceae. Its common names include viper’s bugloss, blueweed, and blue devil. Its native range runs from Europe east to Xinjiang. It is native to Britain and Ireland. It has spread beyond this range, including much of North America. Wild plants grow in pastures, roadsides, and other disturbed ground. They also grow on coastal cliffs, dunes, and rocky sites.

This upright plant grows as a biennial or annual. Garden plants reach 1–2.5 feet [0.30–0.76 metres] tall. Some sources give heights near 3.3 feet [1 metre]. Plants spread about 1–1.5 feet [0.30–0.46 metres]. A biennial forms a low leaf rosette in its first year. It sends up flowering stems in its second year. Early-sown annual plants can flower and seed that same year. The plant has a taproot and dies after setting seed.

Coarse bristles cover the leaves and stems. The green stems bear purple spots. The simple leaves are long and narrow, with white flecks. Upper leaves are smaller and lack stalks. Pink buds sit in curved clusters along side branches. They open into blue flowers with long, red-filamented stamens. Flowers open in sequence from the bottom upward. Bloom can last from May through September. Bees visit the flowers. Each fruit forms four small, bumpy, grey-brown nutlets.

Give this plant full sun and soil that drains well. It accepts poor, dry, sandy, or shallow rocky ground. It also grows in loam and well-drained clay. It tolerates drought and a broad soil pH range. Rich soil can favour leaves at the cost of flowers. Sources list USDA zones 4–8 and UK hardiness H7. Use it in sunny borders, cottage gardens, or wildflower meadows. It grows from seed and can reseed with force. Remove spent flower spikes before seeds mature to limit spread. Washington State considers it invasive.

Serious pest and disease problems are few. Slugs may feed on plants. Whitefly and red spider mites can attack under glass. The bristles can cause skin irritation, so wear gloves. Sources report young leaves as food but also warn of poison. Eating the plant can cause digestive upset and liver damage. Its pyrrolizidine alkaloids can harm horses after heavy or repeated intake. Past uses include snakebite remedies and other herbal treatments. These uses do not establish safety. The root also supplies a red dye.