Species

Lamium galeobdolon

Common Name(s)

Aluminium plant

Authority

Lamium galeobdolon (L.) L.

Family

Lamiaceae

Flora Category

Vascular - Exotic

NVS Species Code

LAMGAL

The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.

Structural Class

Dicotyledonous Herbs other than Composites

Synonyms

Galeobdolon luteum subsp. luteum cv. Variegatum, Galeopsis galeobdolon L., Lamiastrum galeobdolon (L.) Ehrend. & Polatschek, Lamium luteum (Huds.) Krock.

Habitat

Terrestrial. Disturbed bush, shrubland, fernland and margins throughout New Zealand.

Features

An erect, stoloniferous mat-forming invasive pleasant smelling perennial herb to 50cm tall. Leaves mint-like- lance shaped to egg-shaped leaves to 8cm long by 6cm across, long stalked. Leaves pointed, coarsely-toothed with pale silvery-grey patches on either side of midrib on upper surface. Purplish square, densely hairy stems. Long non-rooting runners. Yellow flowers are 2-2.5cm long with upper and lower lips, occurring in dense axillary whorls (Dec-May).

Similar Taxa

No other species with silver patches on the leaves.

Flowering

December, January, February, March, April, May.

Flower Colours

Yellow

Year Naturalised

1988

Origin

Europe, western Asia

Reason For Introduction
Ornamental

Life Cycle Comments
Perennial.

Reproduction
Spreads vegetatively

Seed
Not known from New Zealand

Dispersal
Stolon fragments via soil movement, vegetative spread.

Tolerances
Tolerates moderate shade, physical damage, wet to moderately dry, many soil types.

This page last updated on 9 Nov 2010