Is buddleia invasive?

[Rosemaryandlavender1]

I brought a little buddleia shrub to plant next to my lavender bush. I was going to plant it in the ground but I have been reading it can be quite invasive. Should I plant it in a large pot instead? Has anyone had success planting it in a pot?

I suspect by ‘invasive’ they mean it’ll self-seed everywhere, as it does on railway embankments and derelict land. It should be manageable if you pull out any unwanted seedlings. Regular pruning in spring should keep it to a reasonable size. I used to grow one in a large pot.

It depends on the various,some of the mauve ones can be, but I found that was only in property owned by someone elderly or who wasn't interested in gardening
I have a white one and one with the yellow globe flowers all perfectly fine. They're usually pretty slow growing.

It isn't invasive in itself. The seeds are invasive, but I've had a buddleia in my garden for decades and had only one or two seedlings appear. They are easily dug up anyway.

The thing is... how big are you expecting it to get if you want to keep it in a pot? Mine is cut down to knee height early in the spring every year, and grows to about 8 feet tall by summer when it flowers.

And yes, as a pp says, they spread all along railway lines etc. That tends to be the species lilac-coloured ones rather than other coloured varieties.

We've had one for years, I occasionally find a seedling elsewhere in the garden but they are easy enough to spot and remove. They only tend to take over uncultivated places like railway embankments and derelict ground. Ours gets big, I prune it hard in spring to about 2' tall and it is back at about 8' by midsummer.

Cross-posted with just abut everyone there.

The great thing about Buddleia is you can be completely ruthless when pruning and they just shoot up again next year. After flowering we chop ours down to about 2 Foot. It grows back to 10 foot by the following summer.

It's not invasive but, as others have said, it is self seeding.

The flowers attract loads of insects - it's common name is butterfly bush for good reason!

My mom gave me a tiny one growing in a tiny pot, planted it and a year later had to rip it out as it had spread everywhere 😆

It will self seed and grow anywhere even where it looks impossible and there is lack of soil, nutrients. Do keep a close eye out as it can damage stone walls if it grows too much between cracks. But I remember one from my childhood covered in butterflies.

I have a 5 cms gap between the side of my house and a pathway. A couple of buddleias managed to self seed. They grew big quite quickly and couldn’t be pulled out as they were in such a tight spot. Getting rid of them took a few attempts as I’d cut them down and they’d regrow.
After that I don’t want them in my garden at all.

I think it might depend on the variety. I once saw a white one and only once so I suspect some varieties don’t self seed as successfully as others. So not invasive.

The one that you see everywhere, that seems to thrive in a bit of dust and spit, is hard to get rid of once it is established, so check which variety you have. The RHS website might give you the information you need

Ahh a mix of replies, I am a tiny bit hesitant to put it in the ground now. Il take a picture and see if anyone can identify it

Ours hasn’t and it’s years old and huge. It’s nowhere else in our garden. Our fuschias are far worse for it. They pop up everywhere.

Also a pain in the arse when you've got one that appeared on the top of the ten foot garden wall where you'd have to balance along it like a cat for fifteen foot four inches from the house wall on one side and a neighbours very large greenhouse the other to reach it. And its multiple offspring that emerge from your footpath every year without fail, though.

I try to console myself as I open the front door at 6am to have another bit that's appeared from nowhere slap me in the face with some rather sleeping bumble bees attached that it's very popular with pollinators.

I have three - a large white variety; a dark purple called Black Knight & a miniature purple which is in a pot. The other two are in the ground & get huge, but we cut them back hard each year. They are amazing for insects.
I’ve only found 2 seedlings in the last 8 years. To prevent this I cut the flower heads off after the flowers fade & before the seed sets & falls.
Here is a crab spider on the Black Knight - didn’t quite get the memo about camouflage!

I don't know if this is of any help in identifying it.

And this

There are lots of smaller varieties now in the garden centre.
I have some in pots, so far they have kept quite small.

Beautiful!

No not invasive. I have two. Just prune back every March. Edited to add they’ve been in the ground for 20 years! Never seeded anywhere else. One is purple and the other white.

I would guess as long as you have a proper variety from a garden centre, and not a lilac one from a railway line it is fine.

Mine has never spread but it does get very big if not pruned. However you can be thoroughly brutal with the pruning. I accused my DM of killing it one year as she had razed it to the ground, had to apologise when it bounced back happier than ever.

Forgot the main picture

I have a white one, planted 20 years ago. Hasn't spread elsewhere at all. It is beautiful in flower and great for insects, especially butterflies.

I've taken some cuttings from it and successfully made new plants for elsewhere.

Like others have said I cut it quite hard back in the Autumn.

3m x 5m 🙈 I was in a rush and didn't check properly

That's if you don't prune it back every spring.