willow herb

noun

any of numerous plants belonging to the genus Epilobium, of the evening primrose family, having terminal clusters of purplish or white flowers.

Compare fireweed.

Origin of willow herb

First recorded in 1570–80

I there saw a bunch of "willow-herb" magnificently modelled.
Practical Taxidermy
Montagu Browne
Wherever the willow-herb flourishes there a Guadet is serving The Company.
The New North
Agnes Deans Cameron
Mr. Beebe watched them, and watched the seeds of the willow-herb dance chorically above their heads.
A Room With A View
E. M. Forster
Next season Coltsfoot, willow-herb, Oxyria, and two grasses had planted themselves.
The Romance of Plant Life
G. F. Scott Elliot
Willow-herb, tender and wistful, like a pink sunset cloud, was not slow to follow.
The Wind in the Willows
Kenneth Grahame