''Ajuga japonica'' is a

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 t ...

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The species grows as a

groundcover Groundcover or ground cover is any plant that grows over an area of ground. Groundcover provides protection of the topsoil from erosion and drought. In an ecosystem, the ground cover forms the layer of vegetation below the shrub layer known as t ...

on the forest floor, usually near streams. It is often found in large clusters, due to its spreading and seeding habit. It grows along the ground by

stolons In biology, stolons (from Latin '' stolō'', genitive ''stolōnis'' – "branch"), also known as runners, are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external s ...

, and is usually 8–20 cm (3–8 in) high, including the flowers. It flowers between late April and late May.

Description

The light purple flowers of ''A. japonica'' are tubular and lip-shaped, being long. These flowers grow from the tips of the flower stems. The pinnate, heart-shaped leaves have serrated margins and are long. They are situated opposite on the stem. Ajuga japonica (leaf).jpg, leaf Ajuga japonica (flower).jpg, flower

References

japonica Flora of Asia Flora of Japan Garden plants of Asia Groundcovers Taxa named by Friedrich Anton Wilhelm Miquel Plants described in 1865 {{Lamiaceae-stub