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gldno1

Henbit and Dead Nettle

gldno1
13 years ago

I want to correct myself:

The picture with the bee is not henbit! It is red top dead nettle (lamium purpureum)It has reddish tops and fuzzy leaves, henbit does not.

Here is a picture of both: the round frilly leaf in the middle and upper r h side of the photo is henbit.

I do this every year and have to research it once again.

Henbit is lamium amplexicaule. Both are members of the mint family.

I found where both are considered potherbs, edibles.

Comments (13)

  • sunnyside1
    13 years ago

    Okay. So what I put heaps of in the compost bin today was dead nettle and not so much henbit. I guess I wouldn't have killed myself after all with a tea from it. Unless the "dead" in nettle means just that.
    Glad to have that information, Glenda. Thank you.
    Sunny

  • helenh
    13 years ago

    A dead nettle doesn't sting. Have you ever walked through stinging nettles? Here is another bad guy.

    Here is a link that might be useful: ground ivy

  • taz6122
    13 years ago

    I've rolled in stinging nettles (in CA) but not for long!


    Sometimes they can bother you for a couple days. Very irritating, kinda like fiberglass. When I first moved here I was afraid to touch the dead nettle.

  • teeandcee
    13 years ago

    That's so funny because just yesterday I was looking at some with its pretty lavender flowers and thinking to myself it looks just like lamium, the ground cover we pay money for, lol. I assume those are hybrids, but I still find it amusing.

  • helenh
    13 years ago

    Some weeds are attractive for a time.
    When my sister visited from CA she thought my ground ivy was a ground cover I planted. It is an attractive plant and that is why I didn't get rid of it when I first noticed it. But it won't stop and will crowd out less aggressive plants. Dead nettle is kind of pretty when it has the purple tops and little flowers. It is a comfort that some may not know some plants are weeds. The other side of the coin, some plants I planted on purpose look like weeds to some.

  • christie_sw_mo
    13 years ago

    lol Taz I've never come across stinging nettles in my yard but I sure do remember getting into it when I was a kid.

    Glenda - I get those mixed up too. They're easy to tell apart. I just never can remember which is which.

  • mosswitch
    13 years ago

    I always have maintained that a wildflower is just a weed with a pretty face. So while they are in bloom, the lamiums (nettles) are wildflowers......after that, they are weeds!
    They are pretty in bloom. I always leave a few in the wilder areas of my garden but the minute the flowers fade, they get yanked out.

    But then, I'm one who lets the dandelions and buttercups bloom in the lawn and have violets everywhere. I guess one person's wildflower is another's weed.

  • teeandcee
    13 years ago

    I had a landscape guy out today (we're paying to have the heavy duty stuff done like massive mulching and putting down edging). He told me fall (Aug/Sept) is the time to put down pre-emergent for it. FYI.

    Now if I can only remember that.

  • helenh
    13 years ago

    {{gwi:320502}}
    I have been putting off taking pictures because I haven't read the instructions. Today I just went out and took a picture; I don't know how to get it on the special features or do more then turn it on and click. I hope that is all there is to it. This is not the best picture but I will read the booklet this weekend and see if I can do better.

  • gldno1
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Helen, that looks pretty darned good to me!

    I tried some close-up macros after we talked about that feature and couldn't get a clear picture without using the zoom macro...I need to get that booklet out again.

    Re: The winter annual weeds...I am going to try to string trim them into the ground....since they are annuals looks like if we get rid of the blooms that would be a start. No blooms; no seeds.

  • teeandcee
    13 years ago

    Good point, Glenda.

    Gorgeous pic, Helen!

  • helenh
    13 years ago

    I don't worry about chickweed, deadnettle and henbit so much because they do go away. I think the soil is already full of seeds from other years, but you may be right. Some seeds don't remain viable. I'm afraid successful weeds probably have seeds that last. Ground ivy is another story. It grows stonger in the summer.

  • mosswitch
    13 years ago

    I've been pulling out chickweed and the henbit family this afternoon. I do try to leave some henbit tho because the bees love the flowers. There seems to be a lot less henbit, etc than previous years, I guess because I've been working at pulling it out, but the chickweed never stops! And that stuff is hard to pull and get the roots, of course if you don't, it comes right back.

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