Stachys

''Stachys'' is a genus of plants, one of the largest in the mint family Lamiaceae.Harley, R. M., et al. 2004. "Labiatae". pages 167–275. In: Kubitzki, K. (editor) and J. W. Kadereit (volume editor). ''The Families and Genera of Vascular Plants'' volume VII. Springer-Verlag: Berlin; Heidelberg, Germany. Estimates of the number of species vary from about 300, to about 450.Mabberley, D. J. 2008. ''Mabberley's Plant-Book'' third edition (2008). Cambridge University Press: UK. ''Stachys'' is in the subfamily Lamioideae and its type species is ''Stachys sylvatica''.''Stachys'' In: Index Nominum Genericorum. In: Regnum Vegetabile (see ''External links'' below). The precise extent of the genus and its relationship to other genera in the subfamily are poorly known.

Range and naming

The distribution of the genus covers Europe, Asia, Africa, Australasia and North America. Common names include hedgenettle, heal-all, self-heal, woundwort, betony, and lamb's ears. Wood betony, ''S. officinalis'', was the most important medicinal herb to the Anglo-Saxons of early medieval England.

''Stachys'' was named by Linnaeus in ''Species Plantarum'' in 1753.Carolus Linnaeus. 1753. ''Species Plantarum'' 2:580. Laurentii Salvii. (see ''External Links'' below). The name is derived from the Greek word σταχυς (''stachys''), meaning "an ear of grain",Umberto Quattrocchi. 2000. ''CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names'' volume I, page 91. CRC Press: Boca Raton; New York; Washington, DC;, USA. London, UK. (set). (see ''External links'' below). and refers to the fact that the inflorescence is often a spike. The name woundwort derives from the past use of certain species in herbal medicine for the treatment of wounds.

Human uses

The Chinese artichoke or Crosne ('' S. affinis''), is grown for its edible tuber. Several species are cultivated as ornamentals. Woolly betony ('' S. byzantina'') is a popular decorative garden plant.

Use by other species

''Stachys'' species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species, including the moths ''Coleophora auricella'', '' C. lineolea'', and '' C. wockeella'', all recorded on ''S. officinalis''. They are also widely used by the European wool carder bee (''Anthidium manicatum''), which scrape the hairs from the plant in order to use them for building their nests.

Description

''Stachys'' is a genus of shrubs and annual or perennial herbs. The stems vary from tall, with simple, opposite, triangular leaves, long with serrate margins. In most species, the leaves are softly hairy. The flowers are long, clustered in the axils of the leaves on the upper part of the stem. The corolla is 5-lobed with the top lobe forming a 'hood', varying from white to pink, purple, red or pale yellow.

Circumscription

The distinction between ''Stachys'' and other genera is unclear and has varied from one author to another. In 2002, a molecular phylogenetic study showed that '' Stachys officinalis'' is not closely related to the rest of the genus.Lindqvist, C. and V. A. Albert. 2002
Origin of the Hawaiian endemic mints within North American ''Stachys'' (Lamiaceae).
''American Journal of Botany'' 89(10), 1709–24. This study also found six other genera to be embedded within ''Stachys'' as it is currently circumscribed. The embedded genera are ''Prasium'', ''Phlomidoschema'', '' Sideritis'', ''Haplostachys'', ''Phyllostegia'', and ''Stenogyne''.

Fossil record

†''Stachys pliocenica'' fossil seeds are known from Upper Miocene strata of Bulgaria and Pliocene''.

Diversity

Selected species include:

*''Stachys affinis'' Bunge – Chinese artichoke
*''Stachys ajugoides'' Benth. – bugle hedgenettle
*''Stachys alabamica'' B.R.Keener & L.J.Davenp. – Alabama hedgenettle
*''Stachys albens'' A.Gray – white hedgenettle, whitestem hedgenettle
*''Stachys albicaulis'' Lindl.
*''Stachys alpina'' L. – alpine woundwort
*'' Stachys annua'' (L.) L. – annual woundwort
*''Stachys arvensis'' L. – staggerweed, field woundwort

*'' Stachys bullata'' Benth.
*''Stachys byzantina'' K.Koch – woolly betony, lamb's ear
*''Stachys candida'' Bory & Chaub.
*'' Stachys chamissonis'' Benth. – great hedge nettle, coastal hedge nettle
*''Stachys chamissonis'' var. ''cooleyae'' (A.Heller) G.A.Mulligan & D.B.Munro – Cooley's hedge nettle
*''Stachys chrysantha'' Boiss. & Heldr.
*''Stachys citrina'' Benth.
*''Stachys clingmanii'' Small – Clingman's hedge nettle
*''Stachys coccinea'' Ortega

*''Stachys corsica'' Pers.
*''Stachys cretica'' L.
*''Stachys debilis'' Kunth
*''Stachys ehrenbergii'' Boiss.
*''Stachys floridana'' Benth. – Florida hedgenettle, Florida betony
*''Stachys germanica'' L. – downy woundwort
*''Stachys glutinosa'' L.
*''Stachys hispida'' Pursh – rough hedge-nettle
*''Stachys hyssopifolia'' Michx.
*'' Stachys iva'' Griseb.
*''Stachys lavandulifolia'' Vahl
*''Stachys libanotica'' Benth.
*''Stachys manantlanensis'' B.L.Turner
*''Stachys mexicana'' Benth. – Mexican hedge nettle
*''Stachys milanii'' Magnier

*''Stachys nelsonii'' B.R.Keener & L.J.Davenp. – Nelson's hedgenettle
*'' Stachys palustris'' L. – marsh woundwort, marsh hedge-nettle
*''Stachys pumila'' Banks & Sol.
*''Stachys pycnantha'' Benth.
*'' Stachys recta'' L. – yellow woundwort
*''Stachys riederi'' Cham.
*''Stachys rigida'' Benth. – rough hedgenettle

*''Stachys sprucei'' Briq.
*''Stachys stricta'' Greene
*''Stachys sylvatica'' L. – hedge woundwort
*''Stachys tenuifolia'' Willd. – smooth hedgenettle

Formerly placed here

*'' Agastache foeniculum'' (Pursh) Kuntze (as ''S. foeniculum'' Pursh)
*'' Leonurus japonicus'' Houtt. (as ''S. artemisia'' Lour.)
*''Stachys monieri'' (Gouan) P.W.Ball, now in the synonymy of '' Betonica officinalis''
*''Betonica macrantha'' K.Koch (as ''S. macrantha'' (K.Koch) Stearn)
*'' Betonica officinalis'' L. (as ''S. officinalis'' (L.) Trevis.)

References

External links

''Stachys''
A
Index Nominum Genericorum
At

At
''Stachys''
In
''Species Plantarum''
At
Biodiversity Heritage Library

{{Taxonbar, from=Q156294

Stachys
Lamiaceae genera
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus