Control Common Mullein Organically

Step 1. Correctly identify your plant.

  • This plant grows up to seven feet tall and grows very erect.

  • Leaves grow up to 2 feet and are oblong and are gray green in color and very wooly.

  • The inflorescence is a spike on top of the plant with yellow flowers.  The sulfur yellow flowers are 5-lobed.

Photo credit: https://cropwatch.unl.edu/, K. Chayka and Peter M. Dziuk at https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/

Step 2. Choose your method.

  • Hand pull or dig removing at least the top 2-4” of the root. It is preferable to pull during the rosette stage (before the plant send up the flowering stalk), but mature flowering plants can also be pulled.

  • Most mullein seeds fall near the plant and are established when disturbance occurs.  If there are large patches of bare ground, we recommend seeding natives to prevent reinvasion.

Step 3. Repeat.

Monitor area where plants were found and continue to treat as needed.

To learn more about the biology of Mullein visit the web page below.