Black Horehound - Ballota nigra

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Description

Medium to tall, often straggling, very aromatic plant. Flowers lilac 12 to 14 mm in dense whorls along the leafy stem. Calyx funnel shaped with triangular, finely-pointed 4 to 6.5 mm long teeth.

Similar Species

Red dead-nettle, Hedge Woundwort 

Identification difficulty
ID checklist (your specimen should have all of these features)

Calyx has 5 equal lobes

Habitat

Woodland margins, hedgebanks and roadside verges.

When to see it

June to September.

Life History

Perennial.

UK Status

Mainly found in England except the north-west. Scarcer in Wales and Scotland.

VC55 Status

Frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 247 of the 617 tetrads.

  • Graham Calow
    Higham on the Hill
    04 July 2015
  • David Nicholls
    Watermead Country Park
    06 September 2012
  • Graham Calow
    Sapcote
    23 June 2006
  • David Nicholls
    Kirby Muxloe Castle
    25 August 2012
  • Graham Calow
    Sapcote
    13 July 2008
    Rare white form

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2020+ | 2015-2019 | pre-2015

UK Map

Species data profile ?

Species profile

Common names
Black Horehound
Species group:
Wildflowers
Kingdom:
Plantae
Order:
Lamiales
Family:
Lamiaceae
Records on NatureSpot:
122
First record:
23/06/2006 (Calow, Graham)
Last record:
02/09/2023 (Cunningham, Sally)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

10km squares with records

The latest images and records displayed below include those awaiting verification checks so we cannot guarantee that every identification is correct. Once accepted, the record displays a green tick.

In the Latest Records section, click on the header to sort A-Z, and again to sort Z-A. Use the header boxes to filter the list.

Latest images

Latest records

  • Graham Calow
    Broughton Astley
    24 June 2011
  • Alan Semper
    Melton Mowbray, car park
    10 July 2012
  • Alan Semper
    Harby path
    08 July 2013