Trichostema lanatum

Trichostema lanatum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Subfamily: Teucrioideae
Genus: Trichostema
Species: T. lanatum
Binomial name
Trichostema lanatum
Benth.

Trichostema lanatum, the woolly bluecurls,[1] is a small evergreen shrub or sub-shrub native to arid coastal chaparral regions of California and the northern parts of Baja California.

Trichostema lanatum is many-branched and grows to 1.5 m (5 ft) tall, with narrow, pointed green leaves. The smooth-petaled blue flowers are borne in dense clusters, with the stem and calyces covered in woolly hairs of blue, pink, or white. Flowers are present from March to June.[2]

Spanish explorers in California called the plant romero, the Spanish term for rosemary, and that common name is still sometimes used.[3]

Uses

Trichostema lanatum is cultivated as an ornamental plant, and several cultivars have been developed.[3] It attracts hummingbirds and bumblebees.[4]

It is aromatic and glandular. Native Americans used it for a variety of medicinal and other purposes.[5]

It makes a flavorful tea.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Trichostema lanatum". Natural Resources Conservation Service PLANTS Database. USDA. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
  2. ↑ "Calflora: Trichostema lanatum". www.calflora.org. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
  3. 1 2 3 Rogers, D. (2001). Romero or Woolly Blue Curls. Double Cone Quarterly.
  4. ↑ Santa Monica Mountains Plant of the Month
  5. ↑ Ethnobotany


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