''Melittis melissophyllum'' is a species of flowering plant in the mint family,
Lamiaceae. Its common name is bastard balm. It is the only species in the
monotypic genus
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...
''Melittis''.
[Scheen, A. C., et al. (2008)]
Molecular phylogenetics of tribe Synandreae, a North American lineage of lamioid mints (Lamiaceae).
''Cladistics'' 24(3) 299-314. The genus name is derived from the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
''melitta'', which is in turn from ''melissa'' ("a bee").
[Nicholson, G., et al]
''The Illustrated Dictionary of Gardening: Volume 4''.
L. Upcott Gill. 1887. pg. 347.
;Subspecies
[
*''Melittis melissophyllum'' subsp. ''albida'' (Guss.) P.W.Ball - eastern Mediterranean from Sardinia to Turkey
*''Melittis melissophyllum'' subsp. ''carpatica'' (Klokov) P.W.Ball - eastern Europe from Austria to Baltic States
*''Melittis melissophyllum'' subsp. ''melissophyllum'' - western Europe from Britain to Spain + Italy
]
Distribution
It is native to central and southern Europe from 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 Isles, ...
+ Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
east to Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
+ Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
+ Baltic States.[Altervista Flora Italiana, Erba limona, Bastard Balm, ''Melittis melissophyllum'' L. ]
includes photos + European distribution map
Description
''Melittis melissophyllum'' reaches on average of height, with a minimum of and a maximum of . It is a strongly aromatic plant with erect hairy stems. The root of this plant is a perennial short rhizome. This species is quite variable in shape of leaves and colors. The leaves reach of length. They are oval, bluntly-toothed, quite hairy. They have a short petiole and are in opposite pairs up the stems. The inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...
is composed of large pedunculated hermaphrodite flowers (two to six, or more) growing in the axils of the leaves. The flowers are labiate, arranged in pairs and are one-sided (all flowers "look" at the same side). They are usually white or pale pink with a large pinkish purple blotch on the lower lip. They are mainly pollinated by bees and moths. The flowering period extends from May through August.
Habitat
The plant grows in shady deciduous woods, often with oak, beech, and chestnut. It can also be found among pines and junipers. It is common at altitudes of above sea level.
Cultivation
Bastard balm grows well as an edging in a sunny woodland or a scrubby border. It is attractive to insects. Cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...
s include 'Royal Velvet Distinction'.
Gallery
File:Melittis melissophyllum 1.jpg, Form
File:Lamiaceae - Melittis melissophyllum-3.JPG, Flowers
File:Melittis melissophyllum 230506a.jpg, In white
File:Melittis melissophyllum 'Royal Velvet'.jpg, 'Royal Velvet Distinction'
File:Lamiaceae - Melittis melissophyllum-1.JPG, Leaf
Notes
References
* Pignatti S. - Flora d'Italia - Edagricole – 1982 Vol. II, pg. 452
* Pink, A. - Gardening for the Million (2004) - Project Gutenberg, Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation,
Gardening for the Million
* Klein Carol - How to grow ''Melittis melissophyllum'' - The Daily Telegraph
* Canadian Food Inspection Agency: Plant Breeders' Rights Office: "Royal Velvet Distinction" - 30 Apr 2007
''Melittis melissophyllum''
External links
Biolib
''Melittis melissophyllum''
Bastard Balm
Plants
*
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q3854250, from2=Q158925
Lamiaceae
Flora of Europe
Monotypic Lamiaceae genera
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus