Valerian

(Valeriana officinalis)

 

   

 

Color drawing: C. A. M. Lindman (1901-1905), Bilder ur Nordens Flora.

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

 

Valerian (Valeriana officinalis L.)

Alien: Native of Europe.

Identification: Flowers small, pink, tubular with 5 free petal lobes. Stamens projecting beyond the lip of the flower. Flowers arranged in branched, tight clusters at the apex of the plant. Stem thick, hairy in its lower parts. Leaves highly divided, pinnate in many pairs of opposite leaflets. Plant 1 to 4 feet in height.

Distribution: Minnesota in the west to Quebec in the east, southward to Ohio and New Jersey.

Habitat: Valerian is a garden escape sometimes found along roadsides and in fields.

Flowering period: June to July.

Similar Species: The small, pink flowers in tight clusters in combination with the pinnate leaves and thick stem should identify this species.

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