ABOVE and BELOW: About an acre of Hedge Nettle (Stachys floridana Shuttleworth ex Bentham). This native mint (Lamiaceae) has sprung up all over the area in the past few days. I think its beautiful. . .but it will have to be cut down soon so that we can work on the gardens. It is about knee-high and I'm mildly allergic to the plant.
For those interested in Ethnobotany:
Stachys is from Greek stachys, ear of wheat or spike, because of the terminal spike or raceme.
Two well-known common English names for these plants were "Betony" and "Woundwort," and all were renowned as treatments for sores and open wounds.
Early Florida settlers considreed S. floridana edible, and thought their tubers had a taste similar to cauliflower. Their tubers are tiny. I would think it wold take many to make a meal. . . but consider Florida 100 years ago. One would have had plenty of time to gather 100 tubers of this plant for dinner.
I will collect some to try as a cure for cuts and sores.
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