The flowers of bugleweed are normally bluish to purple but they can be found in white as well. Family When you remove the runners, either lift them and point them in the right direction, discard them, or fully remove them and plant them elsewhere. I asked her if she knew what it was, and she said it was Ajuga. Note: There is another herb by the name of Bugleweed (Botanical Name Lycopus spp. Your planting holes should be roughly eight to fifteen inches apart and you need to loosen the roots before planting in the ground. Ideally, this should be done in the fall or early spring for best results. It is invasive in parts of North America. Thank you I bought 4 plants called Giant Ajuga . And it’s recommended on this site as a medicinal. Strain and drink it for relief! Ajuga is a tough little plant and tolerates a variety of conditions; full sun to full shade, wet soil or dry, clay or sand. ★ CLICK THE IMAGE BELOW TO CHECK IT OUT ★. Theres even a variegated form available. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Ajuga reptans is a common plant related to the wild bugle, but selected for leaf colour and flower spikes. See the video below for a more detailed view of the Ajuga reptans ‘Chocolate Chip’ (if you are viewing this note via email and the video does not load, simply click the title and it will take you to my web page). I wonder if it has the same medicinal properties? This bugleweed also bears edible shoots, with a slightly milder flavoring. See photo from Missouri Botanical Garden. For example, http://www.pnwplants.wsu.edu/PlantDisplay.aspx?PlantID=265: All parts of plant are poisonous if ingested”. Ajuga reptans is a very versatile low growing ground cover, with evergreen, rosette-like foliage. © 2008–2020 Shawna Coronado. hemorrhaging, hangovers, bruises, sores, broken bones, throat irritations, mouth ulcers, and more, © 2020 New Life On A Homestead | Homesteading Blog, http://www.pnwplants.wsu.edu/PlantDisplay.aspx?PlantID=265. The local nurseries sell it as one of many types of ground cover plants. Bugleweed is equally unsafe if you’re headed into surgery or you have diabetes. You really don’t need to fertilize your ajuga bugleweed – it should do just fine on its own! Bugleweed: Pictures, Flowers, Leaves and Identification - Ajuga reptans. But there are a few situations i… Other chemicals, don’t know. Ajuga and Bugle are the same family, just a different type of flower and some slight difference in habit,colour etc. It has also been considered good for the treatment of excessive alcohol intake [4]. https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/b/buglew84.html, https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/b/buglec82.html, https://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/b/bugley83.html, A Modern Herbal was written about 90 years ago and so is far from perfect. There’s even limited evidence suggesting that bugleweed can be used to help treat insomnia, breast pain, and nervousness. Identify bugleweed via its pictures, habitat, height, flowers and leaves. And in addition to the traditional green foliage, this ground cover can also provide the landscape with stunning copper or purple-colored foliage too, making it great for adding year-round interest. A city girl learning to homestead on an acre of land in the country. Apply sparingly to avoid burning the plant. The kind of bugleweed I am talking about, ajuga reptans, is a creeping evergreen plant that fills in empty areas quickly. It is an herbaceous flowering plant, in the mint family, native to Europe. This site may earn commissions when you click on certain links. Moist soil is preferred, but the plant (like other mint plants) is tolerant of most conditions and can even handle a little bit of drought. All these years it has grown, I admit that I didnt know it had herbal / medicinal qualities. Division should be done in the spring. This disease is caused by a fungus and can be prevented by ensuring well-draining soil. If we would only take the time to learn what they are and how they might be used before we yank them out just for looks. It is harvested as it comes into flower in late spring and dried for later use. The bees love it. Ajuga reptans attracts ladybugs and hoverflies. Ajuga reptans is a perennial, so it grows back every year. The flowers are favoured by bees and the dense mat formed by the plants provide shelter for many beneficial organisms. All Rights Reserved. Ajuga reptans, neboli zběhovec plazivý, je náÅ¡ domácí druh. I teach you how to reduce chronic pain with diet and exercise, by growing organic produce and plants, and by helping you explore smart anti-inflammatory recipes and cooking ideas. Talk about a diverse drug! Many gardening and nurasery sites on the internet list this plant as toxic. Bugleweed works well at filling in oversized chunks of shady property – particularly where you’ve had a hard time growing a lawn – and also does well on slopes, banks, or around shrubs and trees. The dark leaves have an unusual colouration, with a purplish-brown or violet sheen on a dark green ground colour. Don’t stress if this happens. If it is darker than other varieties, it would have more phytochemicals — polyphenols, likely. One of our favorites for ground cover is the low-growing ajuga, known botanically as ajuga reptans. It has been used throughout history to treat a good variety of ailments, including hemorrhaging, hangovers, bruises, sores, broken bones, throat irritations, mouth ulcers, and more. Does the plant produce impenetrable thickets, blocking or slowing movement of animals, livestock, or humans? Let the roots stay in the ground but remove the dead foliage. An easy way to keep ajuga bugleweed in check is to surround your garden beds with it. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. There are several types of ajuga bugleweed that grow wild as well as those that you can cultivate in your garden. Provide 3-4 hours of sun a day for best foliage color. « Essential Oils and the Scientific Evidence of Scents, Be the first to get the latest updates and, Learn all about smart anti-inflammatory living -- recipes, diet, gardening, & exercise. The spikes rise to about ten inches tall. However, if you really want to fertilize, you should do this in the spring. It reproduces with underground runners – also known as stolons – which develop in large, dense clumps around the original plant. I have severe degenerative osteoarthritis of the spine and have experienced a drastic anti-inflammatory wellness transformation in my life. The one known as Bugle named as Ajuga reptans, 'Atropurpurea' and originated from Europe, has Blue flowers with purple leaves, it likes a free draining soil but not left dry over long periods. Once the clumps start to become noticeably crowded, you can remove them and transplant them wherever you’d like. The plant is self-seeding. This evergreen or semi-evergreen perennial spreads rapidly by stolons and can be quite aggressive in lawns, so it helps to have a border or sidewalk to stop its creeping and keep it contained. ou will likely want to divide this plant every few years anyway, which will prevent crown rot and overcrowding. I think it is arguably the best herbal ever written. Do this indoors, utilizing pots filled with seed-starting soil. On its own, the foliage stands only 2 to 3 inches above the ground, making this a great low grower that is a creative lawn substitute where traditional grass refuses to perform. If plants get overly zealous simply shear back their growth with clippers or dig up and share with friends. Enjoying life, and everything that has to do with self sufficient living. Ajuga reptans is an evergreen perennial hardy to -20 that makes an excellent ground cover plant, quickly forming a mat of glossy edible leaves. I appreciate that you took a close up picture so I can really see what it looks like. The whole plant is aromatic, astringent and bitter. They should be spaced 15 to 30 cm apart in the spring or autumn. It has dark green oval leaves and makes a good, colourful groundcover Over the past few weeks, the kids and I have enjoyed watching clusters of creeping, little purple flowers seemly plotting to take over the elderberry patch. It’s tough to bring ajuga bugleweed down with anything – and that includes pests and diseases! Crown rot and other fungal conditions are a problem for ajuga. According to Wikipedia, “Ajuga reptans herb has been used in traditional Austrian medicine internally as a tea for the treatment of disorders related to the respiratory tract.”. Plus, there’s nothing better than a wild edible or medicinal volunteering to grow in your yard. When you click on 'Request Password', you'll be sent an e-mail with instructions how to set up a new password. You can also remove some runners, which will help keep this groundcover under control. We are enrolled in the Amazon Associates program, so we may earn a commission if you purchase something from Amazon after clicking one of our links. Spread a 2- or 3-inch layer of mulch around the Ajuga to protect it from pests and help the plant retain water. … The plant is usually applied externally. So I left the sprawling plants to do as they pleased. You should space your plants about a foot apart and water deeply. Thine very three years to prevent them from becoming overcrowded. Sometimes, patches of ajuga bugleweed will die – seemingly at random. Both male and female flowers are found on the same plant and it will attract bees, moths, and even butterflies to your property! You can harvest ajuga bugleweed in the late summer by cutting off the flower spikes. Ajuga bugleweed is shockingly easy to propagate. My absolute favorite groundcover ajuga for garden zones 4 to 9 is Ajuga reptans ‘Chocolate Chip’ or Chocolate Chip Bugleweed. It’s believed to be unsafe to take during pregnancy or breastfeeding, though, so avoid it if you fall into one of these categories. or cut up in salads? Cover them with a thin layer of peat moss or compost and they should sprout within three to four weeks. The Ajuga reptans ‘Atropurpurea’ is a genus from the Lamiaceae family and is commonly named bugleweed.Bugleweed is native to Europe and Asia. I also brew a lot of tea – just toss flowers and leaves into the tea? To consume it for a medical condition, you will want to steep a teaspoon or two of bugleweed eaves in a cup of hot water. Place ajuga in most any location about 10 inches apart and they will soon fill in. Ajuga reptans (commonly called Bugleweed) is noted for her striking range of foliage, colors, and textures. It’s not really a weed per se. Ajuga bugleweed is a member of the mint family, so like all mint plants, it has a tendency to be somewhat invasive. Ajuga reptans is of the mint family. When I grew southernwood however I learned that it somehow pulls infection out of wounds as well as splinters, and when I had gas gangrene in my foot I treated it once with a southernwood poultice and I was well – no doctor visit required. Therefore, you will want to be careful and strategic about where you plant it. However the author quotes the well known herbalists of earlier centuries, providing for many herbs a detail history of their use, and how it has evolved. This oftentimes invasive perennial isn’t just any ordinary weed. Propagation of ajuga by division is an operation for early spring or fall. Plant this tough little ajuga in a difficult spot and watch it explode with happiness. Bugleweed (Ajuga reptans) is wild, edible and nutritious food. It’s deer resistant and is one of the few plants that can grow in close proximity to black walnut trees, which are allelopathic to most other plants. I’m going to see if I have any in my yard! In mass plantings, the blanket of blue flowers is simply stunning. Wife and homeschooling mother of four. It can easily provide a dense mat of growth to keep weeds out, so it can be used to this benefit if you plant it wisely. You shouldn’t need to do anything to pollinate the plant, either. This is the time to lift and divide them in order to obtain additional ajuga plants. Its use in folk medicine for healing external wounds is considered valid because the plant contains tannin, a substance that helps stop bleeding. Ajuga is a very versatile and attractive groundcover that does well in most any sun situation, loves drought, withstands foot traffic, and flowers gorgeously in the springtime. 10. Probably not. Some people believe it reduces the release of the hormone prolactin. Ajuga 'Chocolate Chip' is an attractive ground cover plant that does well in part shade. At first I was tempted to pull them up, but they were so pretty, and I’m beginning to wonder if leaving the “weeds” might even benefit my plants at times. It requires close reading because of that and the way some of her tangential comments turn out to be quite important. The plant will thrive in both shady and sunny locations. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. According to “A Modern Herbal” by Mrs. Grieve (available in searchable form at botanical.com ) they are quite different in medicinal action. You don’t need to keep all of them. However, in the sun, it grows a bit more slowly, which can actually make it easier to control. Bugleweed, as a plant, hasn’t been formally studied by medical researchers. Cooperative Extension, which staffs local offices in all 100 counties and with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. 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