Nepeta L.

Tutin, T. G., Heywood, V. H., Burges, N. A., Moore, D. M., Valentine, D. H., Walters, S. M. & Webb, D. A., 1972, Flora Europaea. Volume 3. Diapensiacea to Myoporaceae, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press : 158

18. Nepeta L. 1

Perennial, rarely annual herbs. Flowers hermaphrodite or unisexual; verticillasters in spike-like inflorescences or in lax or dense, sometimes pedunculate cymes. Calyx cylindrical to ovoid, straight or curved, 15-veined, accrescent; teeth 5, subequal, the upper sometimes exceeding the lower. Corolla cylindricalcampanulate or infundibuliform, 2-lipped; tube slender, long, glabrous inside; upper lip patent, flat, 2-fid; lower lip 3-lobed. Stamens didynamous, parallel; anther-cells divergent, opening by a common slit. Nutlets smooth, tuberculate or rugose.

Measurements and shapes of leaves refer to cauline leaves.

Several species are cultivated in gardens for ornament and are occasionally naturalized. These include N. mussinii Sprengel ex Henckel , Adumbr. Pl. Horti Hal. 15 (1806), with decumbent stems, small, ovate-cordate, grey-green leaves and lax terminal racemes of blue flowers, native to the Caucasus and Caspian region; and more commonly the sterile hybrid of horticultural origin, N. x faassenii Bergmans ex Stearn, Jour. Roy. Hort. Soc. 75:403 (1950) (supposedly N. mussinii x nepetella) with narrower, lanceolate to oblong-ovate, truncate leaves.

All species usually grow in dry habitats, on rocky, hilly or disturbed ground.

Literature. J. Briquet, Les Labiées des Alpes Maritimes 359- 373. Genève & Baie. 1893. G. P. De Wolf, Baileya 3: 99-107 (1955). 1 Flowers unisexual, in diffusely branched, patent inflorescences 2 Stems subglabrous or glabrescent 3 Flowers in lax cymes; calyx 7-9 mm 21. ucranica

3 Flowers in dense cymes; calyx 4-6 mm 24. beltranii

2 Stems pubescent to lanate 4 Leaves serrate, the lowest cordate at the base; corolla blue, shorter than calyx 22. parviflora

4 Leaves crenate-serrate, the lowest rounded or rarely subcordate at base; corolla pink or white, exceeding calyx

23. hispanica

I Flowers hermaphrodite, in spike-like or branched, erect inflorescences

5 Outermost bracteoles equalling or exceeding the calyx 6 Bracts at least 5 mm wide, broadly ovate

7 Bracts membranous 2. tuberosa

7 Bracts herbaceous 4. scordotis

6 Bracts less than 5 mm wide, ovate-lanceolate to linearlanceolate, rarely ovate

8 Leaves 0-5-3(-4) cm, all petiolate

9 Calyx-tube straight, the upper teeth not exceeding the lower (6-11). sibthorpii group

9 Calyx-tube slightly curved, the upper teeth slightly exceeding the lower 12. italica

8 Leaves 3-8(-10) cm, the upper sessile

10 Calyx-teeth at least as long as the tube; inner bracts 1-4

mm wide 3. apuleii

10 Calyx-teeth shorter than the tube

11 Corolla 10-12 mm; bracteoles O-5-1-5 mm wide, linear

1. multibracteata

11 Corolla 16-17 mm; bracteoles 1-5-3 mm wide, linearlanceolate 5. granatensis

5 Bracteoles usually shorter than the calyx 12 Calyx-tube straight, the upper teeth not exceeding the lower 13 Cauline leaves 1-3 cm, mostly petiolate

(6-11). sibthorpii group

13 Cauline leaves 2-7(-8) cm, mostly sessile or subsessile

14 Stem, densely pubescent; calyx 7-9 mm; corolla 8-11 mm

19. latifolia 14 Stems glabrous or puberulent; calyx 4-6 mm; corolla 6-8(-10) mm 20. nuda

12 Calyx-tube usually ± curved, the upper teeth usually exceeding the lower

15 Inflorescence leafy throughout 16. foliosa

15 Inflorescence not leafy, at least in upper part

16 Calyx 8-11 mm; corolla 12-17 mm

17 Stems glabrous or puberulent; leaves crenulate 17. grandiflora

17 Stems pubescent to villous; leaves coarsely crenate 18. melissifolia

16 Calyx 5-8 mm; corolla 7-12 mm

18 Leaves ovate-cordate, with petioles up to 40 mm; corolla 7-10 mm, scarcely exserted from calyx 13. cataria

18 Leaves lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, rarely ovate, with petioles not more than 15 mm; corolla 10—12 mm,

distinctly exserted from calyx

19 Leaves pubescent to velutinous or lanate; corolla cylindrical-campanulate 14. nepetella

19 Leaves glabrous or subglabrous; corolla infundibuliform 15. agrestis