Common Name: little betony
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Lamiaceae
Native Range: Turkey
Zone: 6 to 9
Height: 0.25 to 0.50 feet
Spread: 0.50 to 1.00 feet
Bloom Time: June to August
Bloom Description: Pink-purple
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Ground Cover, Naturalize
Flower: Showy
Leaf: Fragrant
Culture
Easily grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to light shade. Best flowering in full sun. May spread in the garden by self-seeding. Set new plants 12-18” apart for use as a ground cover. Deadhead spent flower spikes to improve plant appearance, to maintain plant vitality, and, if desired, to prevent reseeding.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Stachys minor, commonly called little betony or small betony, is a dwarf stachys which is native to southern Turkey. Showy, tubular, two-lipped, pink-purple flowers bloom in verticillasters (false whorls) in a long summer (June- August) bloom atop crowded spikes rising to 6” tall above a dense, ground-hugging, slowly-creeping mat of wrinkled, scallop-edged, narrow-triangular, dark green leaves spreading to 8-12" wide. Leaves are evergreen in warm winter climates.
Synonymous with and formerly known as Stachys libanotica var. minor.
Genus name comes from the Greek stacys meaning ear of corn in probable reference to the inflorescence of a related plant.
Specific epithet means small in reference to plant size.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems. Plants in this species tend to develop leaf spots, powdery mildew, and rots in hot and humid summer conditions, but less so than typically occurs with the woolly-leaved lamb's ear types (e.g. Stachys byzantina). Watch for slugs and snails.
Uses
Foliage provides interesting texture and shape, but the flowers are a show-stopper. Border fronts or rock gardens. Effective edger or small area ground cover. Containers.