Known as Red Dead-nettle in the UK, the flowers range from pink to purple. Other names include Purple Dead-nettle and Purple Archangel and are perhaps a little more descriptive.
The Dead-nettles are so called because although they look a bit like Stinging Nettles they have no sting.
The flower is best described as a corollla, this is the name that we give a flower when it’s petals are fused together to form a tube.
The opening of the flower has a top “hood” petal and two lower “lip” petals.
Under the hood there are four stamens, two long and two short and a style with a two lobed stigma (not shown)
The stem is square.
Leaves are heart shaped with small, regular toothed edges and hairy. Towards the top of the plant they can appear quite purple.
In the UK the flowering season can start as early as February and last until November. In fact this year I took my first pictures of the flowers on the second of February. This makes them very important to wildlife.
Another name for this Dead-nettle is the Bumblebee Flower they are rich in nectar and pollen and much loved by insects.
Taxonomy
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Lamium
Species: Lamium purpureum
Easy Wildflowers 