where to site my comfrey patch?

ive heard both good and bad things about this plant, and its supposed ability to spread from tiny root fragments worries me... any chance of some help choosing my site?
my options are:
A)north facing bed with improved soil, but i might want to remove it in a few years
B) south facing unimproved clay which but i also might want to remove it in a few years
C) solid clay and rock lump behind shed, poor soil with air pockets, wont want to move it, ever.
D) by the pond, in the flooding area, but again, it might look unsightly here as the pond is the focal point of the garden...

im leaning towards C as it can just run wild there, but it might not establish/grow properly...

 

I'd go for C too as it will go deep & bring up nutrients from the clay and rocks.

Not really experienced it becoming a pest though.

 

hmm one minor problem with that that i just thought of... the base is broken hardcore with lots of air spaces and the earth was mounded on top, so theres a big 'cavern' under the clay section and i wonder if the roots will penetrate through this area...

 

I think I'd vote C too, but I'm not so sure just because I think it is quite a showy plant, and maybe its a shame for it to get a low profile spot.

As for it becoming a nuisance, I planted some Bocking 14 on my land about 3 years ago. Its establishing well but it hasn't run riot yet. Worse case scenario, you can always dig a patch out to save, then round up the rest, but I doubt it will be a problem any time soon.

Some people recommend sinking a large box made of tin sheets or similar to contain the root spread, but that sounds too much like hard work to me.

 

Its very deep rooted. It will find a way through.

 

Sounds like you are very concerned about your substrate.

 

yeah i am :] i want it to flourish, but i also dont want to give up valuable veg space. i think ill try A,C and D and see where it does best...

 

make sure you get Bocking 14 (sterile) variety. Spreading by root is not a problem, but on non-sterile varieties spreading by seed would be a real issue.

 

ive got a seeding one in a bucket and ive got 10 bocking-14s... im not planning on letting the seeding one go to seed at all though

 

Drowning it in a bucket of water to use as comfrey-tea is fine but in any sort of growing plant form there is risk that it flowers and seeds when you are away and personally I wouldn't risk it. The old saying [about weeds] "One year's seed is seven years' weed" is probably true for Comfrey too!