Dead-Nettles
White Dead-Nettle (Lamium album)
Widespread and common on roadsides, in hedgebanks, waste places and gardens. A hairy, patch-forming perennial with a square stem, up to 60 cm (24 in) high. Leaves: in pairs, triangular, pointed and coarsely toothed.
Flowers: creamy-white in whorls, Mar-Nov.
Red Dead-Nettle (Lamium purpureum)
Widespread and abundant in cultivated ground.
A downy, often purple-tinged annual, 10-40 cm (4-16 in) high.
Leaves: in pairs, heart-shaped, toothed and pointed.
Flowers: pinkish-purple in whorls; can flower all year in mild conditions.
Henbit Dead-Nettle (Lamium amplexicaule)
Widespread and abundant in cultivated and waste ground.
A hairy annual, up to 30 cm (12 in) high, with a square green or reddish stem.
Leaves: rounded, bluntly-toothed, top leaves partly clasping the stem.
Flowers: pinkish-purple in whorls; Mar-Oct.
Harvest/Pick
The best picking time is when the flowers are out and the leaves have reached their maximum size without beginning to wither.
Uses
The young shoots and leaves of these common and familiar weeds can be washed and cooked with no additional water with a knob of butter, salt and pepper and some chopped spring onions, for about 10 minutes.
Finish with a dash of lemon juice or a sprinkling of nutmeg.
