Consider-the-Lilies Web Gallery
Heal-all
This native plant, a member of the Mint family, is found throughout temperate North America in habitats that provide a damp soil and partial sun, such as is found in swamps, wetlands, and floodplains. This particular plant was found growing on a floodplain next to the Maury River in Buena Vista, Virginia. Another plant enjoying the same ecology that day was the Golden Ragwort. (For a contrast in habitat requirements, visit the Longleaf Bluets room for an equally succulent plant that requires dry, gravelly soil.)
It has been dubbed Selfheal, Heal all, and Heart of the Earth, among other common names. An infusion prepared from its leaves has long been recognized as a soothing wash for infections.
Ethnobotanists tell us that Indian tribes across the United States and Canada used it in this way for treatment of eye infections, acne, boils, and more than forty other applications, including sores on ponies!
Until the discovery of penicillin in the past century, it was used in the treatment of a complication of tonsillitis called quinsy; the Prunella prefix is the German word for quinsy.
Even though the orchid-shaped blossoms are tiny, their subtle lavender and white beauty stands out against the green undergrowth of a shady nook in Virginia's George Washington National Forest.
Go to the Main Directory to consider more lilies of the field.