Ajuga reptans
Common names
Bugle
Biostatus
Exotic
Category
Vascular
Structural class
Herbs - Dicotyledons other than Composites
Flower colours
Blue
Detailed description
Perennial herb with sprawling habit and long trailing aerial stolons. Leaves up to 5 x 3 cm with wavy margins and winged petioles up to 2 cm long. Flowering stems to about 25 cm tall, usually with 6 small blue flowers. Fruit is not known from New Zealand.
Similar taxa
Ajuga can be distinguished from other Lamiaceae (mint family) by the ring of hairs inside the corolla tube and the upper lip present.
Habitat
Terrestrial. Moist shady places.
Conservation status
Not applicable
Detailed taxonomy
Family
Lamiaceae
Ecology
Flowering
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
Year naturalised
1958
Origin
Temperate Eurasia, N. Africa
Reason for introduction
Ornamental
Life cycle and dispersal
Reproduces by vegetative spread via stolons. Seed is not known to be produced in New Zealand. Dispsersed by humans, soil movement and water.
Wetland plant indicator status rating
Information derived from the revised national wetland plant list prepared to assist councils in delineating and monitoring wetlands (Clarkson et al., 2021 Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research Contract Report LC3975 for Hawke’s Bay Regional Council). The national plant list categorises plants by the extent to which they are found in wetlands and not ‘drylands’. The indicator status ratings are OBL (obligate wetland), FACW (facultative wetland), FAC (facultative), FACU (facultative upland), and UPL (obligate upland). If you have suggestions for the Wetland Indicator Status Rating, please contact: [Enable JavaScript to view protected content]
FACU: Facultative Upland
Occasionally is a hydrophyte but usually occurs in uplands (non-wetlands).
Other information
Etymology
ajuga: From the Greek a- ‘without’ or ‘lacking’ and zugon ‘yoke’, in reference to the calyx lobes being equal, not bilabiate.
NVS code
The National Vegetation Survey (NVS) Databank is a physical archive and electronic databank containing records of over 94,000 vegetation survey plots - including data from over 19,000 permanent plots. NVS maintains a standard set of species code abbreviations that correspond to standard scientific plant names from the Ngä Tipu o Aotearoa - New Zealand Plants database.
AJUREP