''Teucrium scorodonia'', common name the woodland germander or wood sage, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''

Teucrium ''Teucrium'' is a cosmopolitan genus of flowering plants in the mint family Lamiaceae, commonly known as germanders. Plants in this genus are perennial herbs or shrubs, with branches that are more or less square in cross-section, leaves arranged ...

'' of the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle, or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil (herb), ba ...

. It is native to Western Europe and Tunisia, but cultivated in many places as an

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or ''garden plants'' are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars th ...

in gardens, and naturalized in several regions (New Zealand, Azores, and a few locales in North America).Altervista Flora Italiana
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Description

''Teucrium scorodonia'' reaches on average of height. It is a hairy

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of ...

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

with erect and branched stems. The leaves are petiolate, irregularly toothed, triangular-ovate to oblong shaped, lightly wrinkled. The inflorescence is composed by one-sided (all flowers "look" at the same side) pale green or yellowish flowers bearing four

stamens The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filamen ...

with reddish or violet

filament The word filament, which is descended from Latin ''filum'' meaning " thread", is used in English for a variety of thread-like structures, including: Astronomy * Galaxy filament, the largest known cosmic structures in the universe * Solar filament ...

s. These flowers grow in the axils of the upper leaves and are

hermaphrodite A hermaphrodite () is a sexually reproducing organism that produces both male and female gametes. Animal species in which individuals are either male or female are gonochoric, which is the opposite of hermaphroditic. The individuals of many ...

, tomentose and bilabiate but lack an upper lip, as all ''Teucrium'' ones. The flowering period extends from June through August. These plants are mainly pollinated by

Hymenoptera Hymenoptera is a large order of insects, comprising the sawflies, wasps, bees, and ants. Over 150,000 living species of Hymenoptera have been described, in addition to over 2,000 extinct ones. Many of the species are parasitic. Females typi ...

species.

Subspecies

* ''Teucrium scorodonia'' subsp. ''baeticum'' (Boiss. & Reut.) Tutin * ''Teucrium scorodonia'' subsp. ''euganeum'' (Vis.) Arcang

Habitat

These plants prefer sandy soils in woodland and acid heaths, at an altitude of above sea level.

Gallery

File:Gardenology.org-IMG 2822 rbgs11jan.jpg File:Lamiaceae - Teucrium scorodonia-1.JPG File:Teucrium scorodonia 08 ies.jpg File:Teucrium scorodonia 2005.07.11 09.12.35.jpg, Close-up of flowers File:Lamiaceae - Teucrium scorodonia.JPG

References

* Pignatti S. - Flora d'Italia - Edagricole – 1982 Vol. II, pg. 443 * * Pink, A. - , Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
Gardening for the Million

External links

BiolibFlora of Northern Ireland: ''Teucrium scorodonia''
scorodonia Herbs Flora of Europe Flora of Tunisia Garden plants of Europe Medicinal plants Groundcovers Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Lamiaceae-stub