Spotted Dead-nettle bears pink-purple – rarely white – flowers (20-35mm) on erect stems that grow to about 60cm tall. Like other Dead-nettles, the flowers have curved corolla tubes and the lateral lobes of these tubes have only one tooth, distinguishing it from White Dead-nettle. However this handsome perennial is one of the Dead-nettles that is not too difficult to identify on account of its leaves. They are heart-shaped and toothed and frequently bear large white blotches at their centre. This is a hairy species that forms patches, spreading on rhizomes or stolons and is a garden escape that is becoming established in a few locations around the country. An introduced species, it flowers from March to October, on rough, waste ground and roadsides. It belongs to the Dead-nettle or Lamiaceae family.
I first saw this plant growing in the corner of a boatyard at Duncannon, County Wexford, in 2018 and photographed it at the time.
If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, please submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre
