Source of Comfrey?

Hey yo all!

Planning before planting here.

Looking for suggestions on variety and suppliers of Russian Comfrey root. We are in a zone 4 loamy sand, but as I understand, comfrey is not too picky...

The more local source, the better.

Thanks in advance!

Living Earth Orchard
Zone 4 Wisconsin

I know of a company called Marsh Creek Farmstead that supplies the Permaculture communities via mail order. They are quite savvy on Russian Comfrey and can ship you what you need. . . . small or large quantities.

[marshcreekfarmstead.blogspot.com]

Good luck!

Gopher Hill Apples
Zone 8 in California

Several years ago I introduced common comfrey into my orchard. I started seed I got from Richters.com in Canada. It took a couple years to get established, but it has naturalized and now is abundant. Along with being good for my apple trees, it’s a great provision for the natural pollinators, and blooms throughout the season. Bumble bees (the “Sherman tanks” of pollinators) love it. Richters also handles Bocking 4 and 14, and I think they sell plants as well as seeds, although I’m not sure whether plants can be shipped to the US. If you want to try common comfrey, it will grow like crazy from chunks of root, and since we’re in the same neck of the woods, I’d be glad to give you some. (Disclaimer: don’t plant it if you think you’ll ever want to get rid of it!)

Pat McBride
Twin Oaks Orchard
Zone 4b in Minnesota

[strictlymedicinalseeds.com]

Strictly Medicinal seeds has both plants and seeds. I made the "mistake" of getting true comfrey from them, it has grown prolifically and re-seeded hugely.
More than enough for my plant tea ferments, and the bumble bees do love the flowers all summer!

Vista Ridge Orchard
Zone 8a in Washington
235 Cider and heritage apple trees, 72 varieties,

The beauty of the Bocking cultivars is such can be managed as living mulch plants, whereby top-heavy stalks that fall over to smother nearby grasses don't need to be cut off to prevent seed from setting. Symphytum officinale (what some call true comfrey), however, does set seed and can quickly become a dominant understory plant . . . as in the only understory plant. I saw this at Celine Caron's orchard in Quebec -- four acres of fruit trees surrounded entirely by self-seeding comfrey. Another source of assorted strains of comfrey is Nantahala Farms in North Carolina, as posted on our Grower Resources page. Nancy Shirley has put together a very informative website for learning about comfrey nuance.

Lost Nation Orchard
Zone 4b in New Hampshire

Is there a real downside to having a self-mulching understory throughout an orchard? I would think it would eliminate most mowing, and even rodents (unless rodents are ok living completely on comfrey)

Tom Kleffman
currently building a fruit orchard from scratch on the Bayfield Peninsula of Wisconsin, 4 miles south of Lake Superior, dead center of the snow belt, zone 5.