More comfrey

There is plenty of comfrey in flower just presently, mainly the white sort. But the other day I came across some clumps which were blue at the closed end.

With the flowers appearing to dry off to a red-brown.

And then, a bit further on round the circuit, some which were red at the open end.

I supposed that we had different varieties here, not different phases in time of the same variety.

Google Images suggests common comfrey or Symphytum officinale. While at reference 1, Wikipedia tells me that: '... Petals come in mainly two colours – typically cream to yellow or pink to purplish...'. And then that: '... A common hybrid is formed between Symphytum officinale and S. asperum, Symphytum × uplandicum, also known as Blue Comfrey, or Russian comfrey, which is widespread in the British Isles, interbreeds with S. officinale, and represents the economically most important kind of comfrey. Which suggests that the whole business of colour is well mixed up.

Wikipedia also tells me that the upper leave of common comfrey is decurrent, while those of the cross are not. But I can't work that out from my snaps, and would need to take another look at the plants themselves. If I can remember where they were.

While the picture by Wikipedia of a common comfrey growing in Poland does not look like my snaps above at all. And looking back to reference 2, the whole business seems to be getting worse rather than better.

A bit further down, Google Images suggests creeping dwarf comfrey (Symphytum grandiflorum), snapped above from a nursery on eBay. Described by RHS as a 'Clump-forming perennial to 40cm in height, rapidly spreading by rhizomes, with broadly oval, mid-green leaves, and dense clusters of pale yellow flowers opening from red tinted buds in late spring'.

Action 1: wait for the flowers to open or perhaps ripen.

Action 2: visit the RHS library at Wisley to see if they can offer an accessible but learned tome on identifying the plants of the borage family. All 2,000 of them. Or maybe the one at Vincent Square would be more convenient. I think the BH ticket gets me in; at least it has done in the past.

References 

Reference 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphytum_officinale.

Reference 2: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2024/03/white-alkanet.html.

Reference 3: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boraginaceae.