Vinegar Weed

 Trichostema lanceolatum (camphor weed) at Lake Santa Margarita

Vinegar weed is a very interesting plant. It has small elongated leaves and relatively big flowers with long parts sticking out. It was obviously a plant of the mint family. I was lucky to identify it very soon after I took a picture: the plant in question is called Trichostema lanceolatum, part of the Mint family (Lamiaceae). Like other mints it has square stem. The common name is not quite right. The plant indeed has a very strong smell, it feels juicy to the touch but I would not describe it exactly like vinegar smell. The smell is quite pleasant though pungent. That pungent smell is referred to in common names like turpentine weed and camphor weed. Camphor smell would probably be the closest description. As far as I know it is not edible.

Trichostema lanceolatum grows in dry hard soil in hot climate

The plant is striving in hot climate in dry soil though so far I have only seen it in one place: Lake Santa Margarita where the photographs have been taken. I read that the smell is produced by volatile oils and these oils also help to keep other plants away.

Notice the similarity to another plant called wooly blue curls. The Latin name for that one is Trichostema lanatum. Notice the same genus, Trichostema.The latter plant is extremely rare.

Spearmint

Spearmint at Redding Arboretum

 I have previously written a post about hyssop then found out that it was not hyssop after all. Twice, in fact, as it turned out to be. Hyssop keeps eluding me though I'd like very much to see the plant.

Spearmintp leaves close-up

Spearmint or Mentha spicata has been known since ancient time and for good reasons too. Like lots of other mints it is a very aromatic plant: you don't even have to rub the leaves: the pleasant odour is still present. The flowerheads are elongated clusters of tiny flowers, so tiny indeed that I could not capture them on my camera. The stem is typical square stem with opposite leaves alternating on the stem characteristic of the mint family.Like other mints the stems are covered with fuzz.

Mentha spicata

This mint is very good looking and extremely aromatic and it's a jewel plant for every herb garden. It can be grown from seed or propagated from cuttings or even root divisions.

Spearmint bloom

Notice the wide variety within the genus mentha alone. Spearmint (Mentha spicata) looks very different from wild mint (Mentha arvensis) or water mint (Mentha aquatica). Mint species can be crossed to make hybrids, for example peppermint (Mentha × piperita) is hybrid of  Mentha spicata and Mentha aquatica.

I will keep looking for hyssop (Hyssopus).

Prunella

 Prunella vulgaris bloom

Prunella or self-heal is a low growing plant of the mint familty (Lamiaceae). As the common name implies, it is reputed to cure a whole range of minor diseases. More probably though, the plant was used to treat minor cuts and inflammations thus helping the skin to "heal itself".

Prunella vulgaris in the Redwood forest

Like other typical mints, prunella has a square stem and typical minty flowers with two upper and three lower lips. Prunella's stems are fuzzy. The plant has a pleasant fragrance when the leaves are rubbed. As lots of other aromatic mints, prunella is edible though commonly is not used as food.

Prunella grows in meadows but can be encountered even in forests (clearings) if there is suficient sunlight.

Red Salvia

 Salvia splendens or tropical sage

Red salvia (Salvia splendens) does not look like a common sage at the first glance. Yet, look closer and you will see that it has all the characteristics of the Mint family (Lamiaceae): square stem, opposite leaves and sage type flowers, albeit quite big compared to wild sages. This beauty is originally from Brazil and can be found in garden sections of the big stores. It grows wild in the mountains where the climate is warm and humid all year round. I have never seen it wild and from the looks of it, it does seem to belong in flower beds rather than mountainous meadowes. But who knows? It might be tougher than it looks.

Red salvia

 Red salvia view from the top

 Red salvia flower

 Like other plants of the Mint family, the "flower" on the above picture is actually a cluster of flowers. Here's a picture where individual flowers making up a cluster can be seen better:

Scarlet sage in pots

In spite of the name, this salvia comes in variety of colours.

No doubt it would make a very nice garden plant, it not only looks splendid but also has a pleasant aroma that is peculiar to sages.

Horehound

 Horehound in Kit Carson Park, Escondido

Horehound is quite a common plant in the Southern California. It is easily recognizable. It has bitter taste but I heard you can make candies out of it.

The Latin name for horehound is Marrubium vulgare and it belongs to the Mint family (Lamiaceae).

Henbit

 Henbit

Henbit is a rare plant. It grows wild but it has beautiful flowers though a very small ones. The picture shows an extreme close-up.

White Sage

As you probably know, there are several kinds of sages out there, the most common being black sage, white sage and purple sage. These are the major varieties and of course withing each one there are subspeices like Cleaveland sage and so on. For me the above categories are good enough. We already had black sage, so today the features plant is white sage.

It's not really white but it gives the impression of the light color when viewed on from the distance. In spring you can also see sages covered with tiny flowers.

A view from above:

The plant is very aromatic, especially if you crush a leaf between you fingers.

N.B. Note the resemblance to the Indigo bush. Sage does not have stiff stems sticking up.

Black Sage

 Black sage (Picture taken in Escondido, CA)

Black sage is a very common plant in Southern California, it occurs quite frequently in a chaparral desert. It does like some water though. This plant is famous for medicinal use though I don't know what exactly you can do with it except add a leaf or two in your cooking to spice it up a bit.

Black sage is one of the several varieties of sages, other common species being white sage and purple sage. They are also known as salvias.

Wooly Blue Curl

Wooly Blue Curl at the Deer Park Monastery, Escondido

Isn't that a beautiful plant? The interesting thing about Wooly Blue Curl is that i have only seen it once in the wild. The other time was in a plant nursery and it looked a lot like a decorative plant. Well, it definitely grows in the wild as well. The picture above is taken in its natural habitat, which is a little manipulated by its residents but we won't talk about that.