''Lamium purpureum'', known as red dead-nettle, purple dead-nettle, or purple archangel, is an annual herbaceous
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants t ...
native to
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
''Lamium purpureum'' grows with square stems to 5–20 cm
Parnell, J. and Curtis, T. 2012. ''Webb's An Irish Flora.'' Cork University Press. (rarely 30 cm) in height. The
leaves
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, st ...
have fine hairs, are green at the bottom and shade to purplish at the top; they are 2–4 cm long and broad, with a 1–2 cm petiole (leaf stalk), and wavy to serrated margins.
The
zygomorphic
Floral symmetry describes whether, and how, a flower, in particular its perianth, can be divided into two or more identical or mirror-image parts.
Uncommonly, flowers may have no axis of symmetry at all, typically because their parts are spirall ...
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanis ...
s are bright red-purple, with a top hood-like petal, two lower lip petal lobes and minute fang-like lobes between. The
corolla
Corolla may refer to:
*Corolla (botany), the petals of a flower, considered as a unit
*Toyota Corolla, an automobile model name
*Corolla (headgear)
A ''corolla'' is an ancient headdress in the form of a small circlet or crown. They may be produced throughout the year, including mild weather in winter. This allows
bee
Bees are winged insects closely related to wasps and ants, known for their roles in pollination and, in the case of the best-known bee species, the western honey bee, for producing honey. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfami ...
s to gather its
nectar
Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualist ...
for food when few other nectar sources are available. It is also a prominent source of
pollen
Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametop ...
for bees in March/April (in UK), when bees need the pollen as protein to build up their nest.
It is often found alongside
Henbit Dead-nettle
''Lamium amplexicaule'', commonly known as common henbit, or greater henbit, is a species of ''Lamium'' native to Europe, Asia and northern Africa.
It is a low-growing annual plant growing to tall, with soft, finely hairy stems. The leaves are ...
(''Lamium amplexicaule''), which is easily mistaken for it since they both have similar looking leaves and similar bright purple flowers; they can be distinguished by the ''stalked'' leaves of Red Dead-nettle on the flower stem, compared to the ''unstalked'' leaves of Henbit Dead-nettle.
Though superficially similar to species of ''
Urtica
''Urtica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Urticaceae. Many species have stinging hairs and may be called nettles or stinging nettles, although the latter name applies particularly to '' Urtica dioica''.
''Urtica'' species are food ...
'' (true nettles) in appearance, it is not related and does not sting, hence the name "dead-nettle".
Uses
Young plants have edible tops and leaves, used in salads or in stir-fry as a spring vegetable. If finely chopped it can also be used in sauces.
Undyed, the pollen itself is a red colour and is very noticeable on the heads of bees that frequent its flowers.
Folk herbalists use purple dead nettle in many herbal remedies. One of these is purple dead nettle salve that can be used on irritated, itchy, or sore skin.
Habitat
Frequent in meadows, forest edges, roadsides and gardens.
Distribution
''Lamium purpureum'' is a common weed in the western
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, Canada, Ireland, and the
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isl ...
.
Biochemistry
The essential oil is characterized by its high contents of
germacrene D
Germacrenes are a class of volatile organic hydrocarbons, specifically, sesquiterpenes. Germacrenes are typically produced in a number of plant species for their antimicrobial and insecticidal properties, though they also play a role as insect ph ...
. The seed oil contains 16% of an acid characterized as (−)-octadeca-5,6-trans-16-trienoic acid (trivial name `lamenallenic acid'). Other unsaturated esters identified by their cleavage products are
oleate
Oleic acid is a fatty acid that occurs naturally in various animal and vegetable fats and oils. It is an odorless, colorless oil, although commercial samples may be yellowish. In chemical terms, oleic acid is classified as a monounsaturated omeg ...
linolenate
Linolenic acid is a type of naturally-occurring fatty acid. It can refer to either of two octadecatrienoic acids (i.e. with an 18-carbon chain and three double bonds, which are found in the '' cis'' configuration), or a mixture of the two. Lino ...
.
The plant contains
phenylethanoid
Phenylethanoids are a type of phenolic compounds characterized by a phenethyl alcohol structure. Tyrosol and hydroxytyrosol are examples of such compounds.
Glycosides
The red deadnettle (''Lamium purpureum'') contains phenylethanoid glycosides ...
glycosides named lamiusides A, B, C, D and E. It possesses a flavonol 3-O-glucoside-6″-O-malonyltransferase.
Gallery
File:Illustration_Lamium_purpureum0.jpg, ''Lamium purpureum'', ''Flora von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz'' 1885
Image:Red Dead nettle close 700.jpg, ''L. purpureum''
Essex
Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
Image:Lamium purpureum in the spring2.jpg, ''L. purpureum''
Vancouver Island
Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...
,
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...
, Canada
File:Lamium purpureum (red dead-nettle) in Ohio, United States.jpg , ''L. purpureum'' in
Valley View, Ohio
Valley View is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,034 at the 2010 census. It is a suburb of Cleveland with a town council form of government. It is part of a school district that also includes nearby Cuyaho ...
, United States.
File:Hoja SVG (Lamium purpureum).svg, Leaf
File:Purple DeathNettle March 26, 2018.jpg, ''L. purpureum'' March 26, 2018
Calhoun, Georgia
Calhoun is a city in Gordon County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,949. Calhoun is the county seat of Gordon County.
History
In December 1827, Georgia had already claimed the Cherokee lands that b ...
File:Field of red dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum).jpg, Field of ''L. purpureum'' in
Ohio
Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...