LABIATE TRIBE 



320 



which grow in close whorls and are large and handsome, are yellow 

 blotched with red. Damp woods and hedges ; not uncommon. 

 Fl. May to July. Perennial. 



Stachys Betonica 

 {Wood Betony) 



12. Stachys (Wound-wort) 



i. 5. Betonica (Wood Betony). A common 

 And very pretty woodland plant, about 2 feet 

 high, bearing an interrupted head or spike of light 

 purple flowers, on a long and slender stem. Tiiere 

 are always 2 or 3 pairs of oblong crenate sessile 

 leaves beneath the divisions of the spike ; the 

 lower leaves are all stalked. Whole plant softly 

 hairy. Woods and hedges ; common. Fl. July, 

 August. Perennial. 



2. S. sylvatica (Hedge Wound -wort). A 

 branched, hairy plant, 2-4 feet high, with spikes 

 of dull purple flowers arranged in whorls of 6-10. 

 Stem erect ; leaves heart-shaped, crenate, stalked. 

 When in seed the calyx-teeth are rigid. The plant 

 has a strong, unpleasant smell. Woods and 

 hedges; common. Fl. July, August. Perennial. 



3. 5. palustris (Marsh Wound- wort). Much like the last, but 

 distinguished by its taller and stouter stem, softer hairs, narrower 

 tapering leaves, heart-shaped at the base, and more crowded spikes 

 of light purple flowers, 6-8 in a whorl. The smell is less offensive. 

 Marshes ; common. Fl. July, August. Perennial. The form 

 5. ambigua, which is distinguished by having broader leaves, on 

 longer stalks, is said to be a hybrid. It is of local occurrence. 



4. 5. arvensis (Corn Wound-wort). Flowers 2-6 in a whorl ; stem 

 spreading ; leaves heart-shaped, obtuse ; corolla scarcely longer 

 than the calyx. A small plant, 6-8 inches high, occurring abun- 

 dantly as a weed in cultivated land ; distinguished from the pre- 

 ceding by its smaller size, and from the other labiate flowers which 

 grow in similar situations, by its whorls of light purple flower. 

 Common as a weed of cultivation. Fl. July to September. Annual. 



5. S. Germanica (Downy Wound-wort). Stem erect, branching, 

 1-3 feet high ; leaves tapering, heart-shaped at the base, short- 

 stalked ; whole plant remarkable for being covered with soft, silky 

 hairs ; flowers in spikes of crowded whorls. It is found on chalky 

 soil in Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, and Berkshire, but is a doubtful 

 native. Fl. July, August. Perennial. 



