Lamium orvala - BALM-LEAVED RED DEAD NETTLE

Well behaved, non-invasive, low maintenance clumping perennial with bigger purplish flowers.

Much larger leaves and much bolder habit than other dead nettles.

Rarely offered, interesting addition to the shade or shade garden.

Blooming Time: late spring-early summer
Size: usually about 1.5" tall and wide (up to 2'), stays in clump
USDA Zones: 4 to 8 (heat zones 1-8)
Culture: partial shade, dappled shade, full shade. Partial sun in cooler areas . Very adaptable to soil types, soils of any pH. Prefers soils with some organic material or organic mulch (leaf debris),with average moisture (medium). Avoid waterlogged soils.
Moisture Needs: average (medium), medium-moist
Origin: native to woodlands of central eastern Europe (Austria, Italy, Hungary, Former Yugoslavia, Ukraine and Moldova).

Deer/Rabbit Resistant: yes / yes
Attracts Butterflies or Pollinators: no / various bees
Attracts Hummingbirds: no
Pot Size: square 3.5" x 4" deep perennial pot
Plant Combinations: More or less groundcovering clumps can be combined with any half shade or shade tolerant plant - Actaea (Cimicifuga), Alchemilla, Anemone japonica, Bergenia, Brunnera, Dicentra, Digitalis, Epimedium, hardy Geranium (G. maculatum, G. phaeum, G. 'Rozanne'), Geum, Helleborus, Hepatica, Hosta, Iris cristata, Lathyrus vernus, Persicaria, Phlox divaricata, Phlox stolonifera, Primula, Polygonatum, Pulmonaria, Salvia koyame, Scutellaria, Stylophorum, Tricyrtis, Uvularia and ferns. Looks wonderful with more fine structures of grasses like Carex (both narrow and wide- leaved), Chasmantium, Deschamspia, Hakonechloa, Hystrix, Luzula or Melica.

Goes well with bulbs (Anemone blanda, Narcissus) and native spring ephemerals like Claytonia, Dodecatheon, Hepatica, Mertensia, Jeffersonia, Sanguinaria, Trillium and others.

Pot size: square 3.5" x 5" deep pot

Picture copyright: Hannes wilms, Commons Wikipedia