The Temperate Database is in the process of being updated, with new records being added and old ones being checked and brought up to date where necessary. This record has not yet been checked and updated.

Common Name: Red Dead Nettle

General Information

Lamium purpureum is an annual plant that can grow up to 0.30 metres tall.
It is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and medicine

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to the Mediterranean and Israel.

Habitat

Roadsides, waste places and as a common weed of cultivated land[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Annual
Height	0.30 m
Pollinators	Bees, Self
Self-fertile	Yes
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

An easily satisfied plant, it tolerates most soils and conditions. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Dislikes shade.
A common garden weed, usually flowering at almost any time of the year and the seed is capable of germinating even in the winter if the weather is mild[]. In rich soils the plant can grow quite lushly, in poor soils it will only grow a few centimetres tall before flowering and spreading its seed. The plant is easily controlled, however, and never really becomes a pest[].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[].
A good bee plant[, ]. Grows well with potatoes[].

Edible Uses

Young leaves - raw or cooked as a potherb[, , , , , , ]. The plant is a short-lived annual, but seeds can germinate at almost any time of the year and so the leaves are often available all year round.

Medicinal

The whole plant is astringent, diaphoretic, diuretic, purgative and styptic[, ]. A decoction of the plant is particularly useful for checking any kind of haemorrhage, whilst the fresh bruised leaves can be applied to external cuts and wounds[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - plants usually self sow freely and should not require human intervention. When required, the seed can be sown in situ as soon as it is ripe.