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Ericaceae
Bog Rosemary
Andromeda polifolia
Northern grace, mythological beauty, bog mystery.
- Family
- Ericaceae
- Genus
- Andromeda
- Native to
- Northern Hemisphere (circumboreal)
- Bloom season
- Spring
- Type
- Evergreen shrub
- Height
- 20–40 cm (8–16 in)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Acidic, peat, very wet
- Water
- Very high
- Hardiness
- 2–6
- Lifespan
- Long-lived perennial
Did you know
- Bog rosemary is named after Andromeda, the Greek princess chained to a rock in the sea—Carl Linnaeus named the plant in 1732 because he saw it growing on rocky islands surrounded by bog water that recalled Andromeda's predicament.
- Linnaeus wrote a famously poetic passage about discovering bog rosemary on a Swedish lake island, where the dragonflies hovering around it suggested the sea-monster threatening the original Andromeda.
- Each pink urn-shaped flower hangs upside down on a thin red stalk—delicate enough that they tremble in the lightest breeze, like tiny lanterns over a peat bog.
- Despite its delicate beauty, bog rosemary is highly toxic—it contains andromedotoxin, which can cause vomiting, low blood pressure, and dangerous heart symptoms if eaten by livestock.
- Honey made from bog rosemary nectar can be toxic to humans—'mad honey' poisoning has been recorded in northern Europe and Turkey since ancient Greek times.
Color meanings
0
northern grace
1
mythological beauty
2
bog mystery