Other Definitions
lamium (dict)
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LamiumAbout 50 species, including:
Lamium album (White Deadnettle)
Lamium amplexicaule (Henbit Deadnettle)
Lamium hybridum (Cut-leaf Deadnettle)
Lamium maculatum (Spotted Deadnettle)
Lamium purpureum (Red Deadnettle) The deadnettles, genus Lamium, are the type genus of the plant family Lamiaceae. They are all herbaceous plants native to Europe, but several have become very successful weeds of crop fields and are now widely naturalised across the temperate world. The genus includes both annual and perennial species; they spread by both seeds and stems rooting as they grow along the ground. The common name refers to their superficial resemblance to the unrelated stinging nettles, but unlike those, they do not have stinging hairs, so are harmless or apparently 'dead'. Henbit Deadnettle (Lamium amplexicaule) is native to southern Europe, and naturalised in eastern North America and elsewhere. It flowers very early in the spring even in northern areas, and for most of the winter and the early spring in warmer areas such as the Mediterranean and where naturalised in the southeast US. It propagates freely by seed and is regarded as a minor weed. Sometimes entire fields will be reddish-purple with its bloom before spring cultivation. Where common, is an important nectar and pollen plant for bees, especially honeybees, where it helps start the spring buildup. Several closely related genera are included in Lamium by some botanists, including Lamiastrum (Yellow Archangel), Galeopsis (hemp-nettles) and Leonurus (motherworts).
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