NewsJardinTV, the channel that, with you, shares 100% of the passion for plants, gardens, botany, nature and gardening, offers you issue 373 of its show "Le Quotidien du Jardin" produced by Nicole and Patrick Mioulane. Antony1149 asks us the following question: I would like to plant a comfrey in my garden. Could you dedicate an episode of your show Le Quotidien du Jardin to it? Comfrey is the common name for several plants of the genus Symphytum, (Boraginaceae family) which includes 35 species of plants native to Europe, the Caucasus and Iran. Symphytum officinale comfrey grows naturally in damp meadows or along river banks and ditches in Europe, Western Asia and North America. It is a vigorous perennial herbaceous plant with branched and strongly winged stems that measures from 30 cm to 1.50 m in height. Displaying a remarkable hardiness (−35 °C), it is also tolerant to drought because it develops a solid taproot that can sink to almost 2 m deep in the soil. The plant, which bears winged stems, is covered with long, tapered hairs pointing downwards, rough on the stems, softer on the leaves. The latter are alternate, oval-lanceolate and measure from 15 to 25 cm long. Comfrey flowers from May to the end of June in scorpioid (rolled) cymes bearing two rows of flowers 1 to 2 cm in diameter. The corollas are formed of five equal petals fused to form a tube or a narrow cream to yellow or pink to purplish bell. The plant produces a large amount of nectar but because of its shape, only insects with long tongues can reach it. Some bees have solved the problem by biting the side of the flower to access the nectar, a behaviour known as 'nectar stealing'. Some comfreys are used as ornamental plants: • Symphytum caucasicum, the Caucasian comfrey or blue comfrey is a rhizomatous perennial forming a rosette of oblong, downy leaves, 15 to 25 cm long. The bright blue summer flowers, 1 to 5 cm long, are borne on erect, then drooping stems. • Symphytum grandiflorum, the large-flowered comfrey, is a stocky perennial (30 cm) with a spreading habit (60 cm) that is planted mainly as ground cover in shady areas. It forms a compact carpet of dark green leaves and is adorned in May and June with creamy white or pale yellow bell-shaped flowers. The cultivar 'Hidcote Blue' has white flowers shaded with blue at the base; 'Hidcote Pink' is similar but with white and pink flowers and lighter foliage. • Symphytum × uplandicum, Russian comfrey or travelling comfrey is a natural hybrid. It flowers later than common comfrey (between June and August) and its flowers are most often blue or purple. There are very decorative hybrid cultivars with variegated foliage such as 'Goldsmith' with yellow-edged leaves and blue, pink and white flowers on the same inflorescence. Comfreys like rich, deep, humus-rich, moist soils and filtered light. It is an invasive plant, which can appear spontaneously in the garden. Comfrey manure made by marinating 1 kg of leaves in 10 litres of water for 4-6 weeks, which gives a very smelly liquid, is very popular in organic farming for its richness in potassium, phosphorus, calcium and nitrogen. It is used to fertilise tomatoes, squash and potted plants, but also as a compost activator. Comfrey can also be used as green manure, before planting bulbous or tuberous plants (especially potatoes) or as a cover for small fruits. However, Symphytum officinale is considered an invasive plant, because it spreads generously naturally by swarming its seeds. Be careful, comfrey contains a mixture of phytochemical compounds that are toxic, particularly for the liver (pyrrolizidine alkaloids). The use of comfrey is completely contraindicated during pregnancy and breastfeeding, in infants and in people with liver, kidney or vascular diseases. Thank you for following this daily show. We hope you enjoyed this short video interlude. The ambition of the entire NewsJardinTV team is to make you spend pleasant moments in our company. We invite you tomorrow from 7 p.m. for a new show: "LE QUOTIDIEN DU JARDIN". It's on NewsJardinTV and nowhere else! In issue 374, we will answer the following question: In your video on Satan's embers you mentioned Eremurus, plants that I did not know. A show to introduce us to them would be interesting...