Cut-leaved selfheal
A low perennial of dry calcareous grassland with cream-white flowers; visited mostly by bumblebees in early to mid summer, it gives honeybees a little nectar.
- Nectar
- Medium
- Pollen
- Low
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Height
- 0,1-0,3 m
- Life cycle
- Perennial
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Cut-leaved selfheal is a low perennial of dry, calcareous grassland, forest clearings and roadsides from southern and central Europe to the Mediterranean region, Anatolia, the Caucasus and Iran. Its upper leaves are deeply lobed. Its large-lipped, creamy-white flowers in dense spike-like clusters are visited mostly by bumblebees; honey bees can only partly reach the nectar.
Flowering
It flowers from June to August. Because it is short, it can keep flowering in mown and grazed meadows too.
Honey and pollen
It has no honey of its own, and no nectar measurements specific to this species were found. The assessment is based on the traits of its close and better-known relative, Prunella vulgaris. Its pollen contribution is low.
Note for the beekeeper
On its own its value for beekeeping is limited; but as part of the species-rich vegetation of dry grassland it supports the diversity of wild bees. It can hybridise with the purple-flowered Prunella vulgaris, and plants with intermediate colours may be seen.