#stachys sylvatica

L’épiaire des bois au goût de champignon

L’épiaire des bois est une plante de la famille des Lamiacées au toucher très doux qui pousse dans les bois humides. Au premier abord ses feuilles sentent mauvais mais après les avoir bien froissées elles dégagent une bonne odeur de champignon ! De quoi nous régaler dans de nombreuses recettes. (more…)

Stachys sylvatica, Lamiaceae

I am always happy to encounter hedge woundwort, a common Eurasian woodland herb with small, interestingly marked flowers, as it reminds me of the days of my childhood, when I used to stroll around with my huge, old, medicinal plants book heavy in my backpack. Similarly to many other plants in the mint family, it has a characteristic -but unpleasant- smell, more evident when the leaves and stems are crushed, and it readily forms clonal colonies spreading through lateral rhizomes. It is self-fertile and sets seeds just as easily, as it is frequently visited by bees and bumblebees, attracted by the flowers rich in nectar.