Lamium album
White dead-nettle
Common names: Dead-nettle, White archangel
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Spacing
- 30 cm, rows 35 cm
- Lifespan
- Perennial
- Sowing
- Apr, May, Sep
- Harvest
- May–Aug
- Hardiness
- Hardy down to −25 °C
- Water need
- Medium
- Origin
- Native to Germany
Photo: Coyau · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Description
The White Dead-nettle resembles a nettle but does not sting, hence its name. Its white lip-shaped flowers are an important early nectar source for bumblebees, and the dried flowers can be used to make a mild tea. In the garden it serves as a useful groundcover in partial shade.
Care instructions
Plant the dead-nettle in a partially shaded spot with humus-rich, not too dry soil, it feels especially comfortable at the edge of a grove. Keep the soil consistently moist. Harvest the flowers from May to August on sunny mornings and dry them gently. After flowering, cut the plant back; it will regrow fresh.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingApr–May, Sep
HarvestMay–Aug
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 3 °C, ideally 12 °C
- Days to sprout
- 30 to 90 days
- Light
- Needs light to sprout
- Sowing depth
- Press in, don't cover
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
loamy, humus-rich, moist, nutrient-rich
Choose a fresh-moist, loose loam or humus soil with a good nutrient supply; white dead-nettle does not tolerate waterlogging, but the soil should stay slightly moist. On very poor sandy soils it grows weakly. There, some compost at planting helps.
Feeding
Medium feeder
Months
Mar–Apr
On soils that are naturally rich in humus and nutrients, you do not need to feed. As an indicator of nitrogen, white dead-nettle manages here without additions. Only on poor sites do you work a little compost, and if needed horn shavings as well, shallowly into the soil around the plant in spring (March/April).
Overwintering
White dead-nettle is a native wild perennial and reliably comes through winter in the lowlands of Central Europe without protection. You do not need to do anything; it re-sprouts in spring. Optionally, you can cut faded shoots back close to the ground in late autumn.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
- Division
- Cuttings
- Runners
White dead-nettle propagates well in several ways.
Sowing (seeds): From February, scatter the seed only on the surface of seed compost. The species germinates in light and needs no soil covering (germination depth about 0.2 cm). Keep the substrate evenly moist and place it in a bright spot at about 15 to 20 °C; germination starts after about two to three weeks. Alternatively, sow directly in the bed from March to June as soon as the soil is frost-free. Note that young plants raised from seed need two to three years to first flowering. The plant also readily self-seeds.
Division (spring or autumn): In early spring before strong growth starts, or in autumn, lift the plant with a garden fork and carefully divide it into several pieces. Make sure each piece has a strong root and enough foliage, and that the roots are damaged as little as possible. Replant the pieces straight away and water well. Dividing every three to four years rejuvenates older clumps.
Cuttings (early summer to autumn): Cut non-flowering shoot tips about 10 cm long just below a leaf node, remove the lower leaves and leave only two to three leaves at the top. Insert the cuttings in a moist, free-draining sand and soil mix and keep them evenly moist in a bright place out of full sun; rooting takes place within a few weeks.
Runners: White dead-nettle forms creeping runners, often staying green through winter, and by nature spreads very readily. Simply cut rooted runner sections off the mother plant with a spade and plant them in the new spot. This is the quickest and most reliable way. Tip: because the plant spreads vigorously, a root barrier can help limit its spread in the bed.
Companion planting
Good neighbors
nightshade family (Solanaceae)
particularly well establishedYou will find that basil next to tomato and pepper improves taste and keeps whiteflies and aphids away.
For example TomatoSweet pepperCocktail tomatoEggplantCape gooseberryChili and 13 more species in the catalogue
Source: classic companion planting (DACH-Gartenpraxis)
cabbage family (Brassicaceae)
You will notice that the intense scent of basil, thyme, and others confuses the cabbage whitefly and keeps it away from the cabbage family.
For example White cabbageKohlrabiRadishKalebroccolicauliflower and 41 more species in the catalogue
Source: bio-gardening intercropping practice
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow White dead-nettle yourself
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