Red Valerian - Centranthus ruber
Tufted medium to tall greyish and somewhat fleshy and waxy looking plant. Leaves lanceolate to oval, pointed or blunt, the uppermost slightly toothed at the base and clasping the stem. Flowers red (can be pink or white) funnel shaped, 8 to 12 mm, in large panicles, fragrant, spurred at the base.
Walls and banks.
June to August.
Perennial - Sometimes becomes established in the wild as a garden escape. It can be seen on the stone faces of some disused quarries in our area.
Naturalised in Britain north to southern Scotland, especially in south-western areas.
Occasional in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 22 of the 617 tetrads.
Barbara Cooper
Holwell Nature Reserve
21 June 2012
Alan Semper
Melton Street
04 June 2013
David Nicholls
Croft Pasture
09 May 2014
Alan Semper
Holwell Browns Hill Quarry
12 July 2013
Barbara Cooper
Holwell Nature Reserve
21 June 2012
Andy's Rutland
Exton Road-Empingham
09 June 2022
David Gould
Wolsey Island, Leicester
05 June 2015
Alan Semper
Melton Street
04 June 2013
Leicestershire & Rutland Map
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Species profile
- Common names
- Red Valerian
- Species group:
- Wildflowers
- Kingdom:
- Plantae
- Order:
- Dipsacales
- Family:
- Caprifoliaceae
- Records on NatureSpot:
- 134
- First record:
- 10/06/2006 (Calow, Graham)
- Last record:
- 27/03/2024 (Pugh, Dylan)
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Trioza centranthi
Whilst the adults can be very difficult to identify without detailed examination, the reddish larval leaf roll galls on Valerian are quite distinctive.