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Lamiaceae
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Gentle compliance.
- Family
- Lamiaceae
- Genus
- Physostegia
- Native to
- Eastern North America
- Bloom season
- Summer, Fall
- Type
- perennial herb
- Height
- 2-4 ft
- Sunlight
- full sun to part shade
- Soil
- moist, well-drained, fertile
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- 3-9
- Lifespan
- perennial
Did you know
- Each individual flower can be pushed to either side on its stem and will stay in its new position — the 'obedient' behavior that gives the plant its common name.
- This hinged arrangement is caused by the way the flower is attached to the central stem; botanists describe it as having a 'joint-like' or articulate pedicel.
- Despite the gentle common name, obedient plant spreads aggressively via rhizomes and can overwhelm garden borders if not divided every few years.
- The genus name Physostegia means 'bladder covering' in Greek, referring to the inflated calyx that persists around the developing fruit after flowering.
- Native Americans used preparations of obedient plant root to treat a variety of ailments; it was also used as a ritual smudge plant in some Great Plains traditions.
Color meanings
0
flexibility
1
harmony
2
pleasant surprise