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Lol...I won't have to... it has staged a coup! it has taken over! I've been ripping it out of the beds since I first planted it...and it continues to spring up everywhere. It loves my gardens...but I don't care for it's smell... and it tends to encroach on other hardies..pushing even them to the margins. So...my advice and my opinions are negative on this plant...but having said that, here's a proviso... It makes lovely clumps and blossoms profusely (as a result~seeds copiously) ..if kept within it's bounds by potting up or barriers it will give a terrific show...I planted mine with German Chamomile and the feverfew almost crowded it out...and that's doing something~~! If you have a few acres of wasteland...by all means plant feverfew!!
Now you have me scared. I live in a zone 5a (Anchorage, Alaska) and just put some in my garden. We run -15 in the winter (on average) to +70 (if we are lucky) in the summer. How does that compare with your temps. I am trying to decide if I need to run out and excise this plant before it is too late. I am already over run with English Daisy's (which I have dug up and will BE digging up for years to come.
I don't have a problem with Feverfew becoming invasive. Not at all. It's well behaved. It does seed itself, yes, but not a lot, and the seedlings are easy as pie to yank up...it's never seeded anywhere but the garden, not even in the lawn.
If you're afraid of it simply deadhead the spent blooms. As an added bonus if you do, it'll bloom again in the fall.
Don't be afraid of this plant. It is a filler that weaves your garden together into a coherent whole and is wonderful in cut bouquets. I have never had trouble controlling it and I can't imagine my garden without it. If it pops up somewhere I don't want (like at the feet of my roses), I either transplant it to a more desirable location or toss it on the compost pile.
This is one of my most-beloved plants, maybe because my grandmother gave it to me. Its ability to seed itself and withstand all kinds of conditions has served me well when I have forlorn areas I want to start "working up." When I see those bright little flowers, it's just so CHEEERFUL!
And, deer do not eat it (I use it as camouflage near emerging lilies and clematis). It decorated my son and daughter's organic wedding cake, and it does have clear herbal uses. Glad to see one of my favorites featured!
Seems I'm in the minority here. Have since moved to a more northerly area and find the deer resistant idea very encouraging. Part of my problem with the spreading of the feverfew was the fact that my garden was a small city plot..and I had other plants to fit in...another plant that I found wanted to take over was Melissa officinalis...lemon balm and Mentha spicata, spearmint. In the small area they all had their own spots but wanted to take over other less hardy but just as desirable plants... So... now that I have a much larger area to fill with herbs and flowers I'm considering giving feverfew, melissa and mint a bit of a break. If they want to spread...I won't care! Have also found (happily) that I have Joe Pye weed, (Eupatorium) along the stream... Now that's a plant I really can love! (and if it's a little bit invasive ...who cares??!! I've got room for it!
