«Queen» - Organic Achillea Seeds

Red Yarrow is an herbaceous, mat forming perennial growing from 20 cm to 60 cm, depending on the specific variety or sub species. However, the foliage remains low with most of the height obtained from the long flower stalks.

The green-grey leaves are 5-20cm long with a bipinnate or tripinnate form and are covered in small hairs, which accentuate the feathery appearance of the foliage. The leaves at the base and up to the middle are the largest and they are arranged in a spiral around the stem. The species name ‘millefolium’ is derived from the large number of segments in the foliage. The flowering period is from summer to autumn, with the red flowers appearing in flat clusters or corymbs at the top of the plant.

Red Yarrow is often called Common Yarrow, but the original flower colour was generally white or cream. Today there are many modern cultivars with different flowers colours, including red. Yarrow plants are in the Asteraceae family and belong to the Achillea genus, which has over 80 species.

These plants live in native habitats across Europe and Asia, with some growing naturally in North America. Depending on the species or sub species, they range in height and have white, yellow, orange, pink, or red flowers held in a characteristic corymb or flat cluster at the top of the stem. There are many modern cultivars that lend a cottage garden feel to any modern garden.

There is much folklore about the Yarrow family, although which species is involved may sometimes be quite vague. The name Achilles is said to be derived from the Trojan War when the hero Achilles was taught by Charon the Centaur to use the leaves of yarrow plants to heal his soldier’s wounds.

Thereafter, soldiers carried yarrow through wars for many centuries and helped to create the popular name of Soldier’s Woundwort. Other older names include Knight’s Milfoil, Bloodwort, Nosebleed and apparently The Ancients also knew of the healing properties and called yarrow by the name Herba Militaris, the military herb. Yarrow was also considered to have magical attributes and was used for divination, spells and for protecting loved ones.