Skullcap
Botanical name: Scutellaria
Skullcap
Botanical name: Scutellaria
Description
The attractive flowers that appear in the summer make skullcap popular plants in perennial and rock gardens, where they grow well in partial or sunny locations. The flowers are hooded and tubular-shaped, giving them a unique appearance. The plants grow from seeds produced in the fall as the flowers begin dying back.
Species of Skullcap
Baikal skullcap
Baikal skullcap (Scutellaria baicalensis) is named after lake Baikal in Russia, which is part of its native range. Baikal skullcap produces sprays of attractive purple flowers that give it some ornamental appeal, and it has traditional significance in Chinese culture.
Small skullcap
Small skullcap (Scutellaria parvula) is a type of wild mint that comes from the central and eastern United States (though today it is hard to find in the east). This species grows best with full sunlight, so it is usually found in prairies and savannas. In places with too many tall grasses, small skullcap may cluster around ledges and ridges.
Danny's skullcap
Danny's skullcap prefers to live in woodlands or areas recently cleared up by wildfire. This wildflower grows from a single or cluster of stems that are attached to creeping rootstalk. The name of the plant comes from the Latin word 'scutella,' referring to the shape of its calyx which looks like a tiny helmet.
Dwarf indian skullcap
Dwarf indian skullcap (Scutellaria indica) is a small perennial that grows slowly and reaches no more than 13 cm tall. The dwarf indian skullcap thrives in full sun or partial shade in medium to moist, well-drained soil. It blooms in spring with tiny snap-dragon shaped flowers that are a brilliant blue-lavender color and grow on 2.5 cm long spikes.
Barbed skullcap
It is a perennial herb generally reaching up to 35 centimeters tall, sometimes taller. The lightly toothed leaves are somewhat lance-shaped or triangular and up to about 3 centimeters long. The flowers are borne on pedicels that have tiny, sharp bracteoles. The purple-blue, lightly hairy flower corolla is roughly a centimeter long. The plant grows in moist and wet habitat, such as paddy fields.
Skullcap
Skullcap (*Scutellaria galericulata*) is a wildflower that can be found in wetlands of all types, in both Eurasia and North America. Its tubular blue flowers grow along the stem of the plant. Skullcap provides food for a variety of insects, including long-tongued bees and butterflies, but its leaves are bitter so animals do not graze on it.
Sandy skullcap
Stretch a long rhizome on a sandy beach. The height is 10 to 40 cm, the stem has hair and becomes four corners. The leaves are thick, oval, rounded, 1.5 to 3.5 cm long and 1 to 1.5 cm wide. The edges have low blunt saw teeth, have a little bristles on both sides, and face each other with a short petiole. One flower attaches to the upper leaf bud, and two flowers bloom in one direction. The corolla has a blue-purple lip shape with a length of 2 to 2 cm. The buds are 3 mm long for flowers and 5 mm for fruits.
Heartleaf skullcap
Heartleaf skullcap (Scutellaria ovata) is part of the mint family. The plant gets its name because part of its bloom looks like a medieval skullcap and because it has heart-shaped leaves. It’s indigenous to North America.
Drummond's skullcap
Partly named for naturalist Thomas Drummond, drummond's skullcap is an annual wildflower with purple blooms. Also named in part for the Latin word, scutella, which means little cup, because the flowers are shaped like small cups.
Hoary skullcap
Hoary skullcap (Scutellaria incana) is an indigenous species of mint in the central and eastern parts of the United States. 'Hoary' means 'having white hair,' and the stems of this plant do indeed live up to their moniker. Wildflowers of this type were named 'skullcaps' because their shape is reminiscent of a helmet.
Helmet flower
Another name for helmet flower (Scutellaria integrifolia), a flowering perennial in the mint family, is helmet skullcap. These are particularly apt names because the curved upper petals on the flowers give them a distinctive helmet-like appearance. This plant is indigenous to the eastern United States. Helmet flower will grow best in areas where it’s away from direct sunlight but not too shady.
Blue Skullcap
Blue Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) is a flowering wetland plant that grows wild near marshes and damp meadows across North America. It blooms in late summer with three flower color variants: blue, white, and pink. It tends to grow in small clustered colonies in all kinds of shaded wet places. This mint-type plant tastes bitter to foraging animals, but pheasants like the seeds.
Scutellaria pekinensis var. transitra
The attractive flowers that appear in the summer make scutellaria pekinensis var. transitra popular plants in perennial and rock gardens, where they grow well in partial or sunny locations. The flowers are hooded and tubular-shaped, giving them a unique appearance. The plants grow from seeds produced in the fall as the flowers begin dying back.
Scutellaria pekinensis var. ussuriensis
The attractive flowers that appear in the summer make scutellaria pekinensis var. ussuriensis popular plants in perennial and rock gardens, where they grow well in partial or sunny locations. The flowers are hooded and tubular-shaped, giving them a unique appearance. The plants grow from seeds produced in the fall as the flowers begin dying back.
Scutellaria dependens
The attractive flowers that appear in the summer make scutellaria dependens popular plants in perennial and rock gardens, where they grow well in partial or sunny locations. The flowers are hooded and tubular-shaped, giving them a unique appearance. The plants grow from seeds produced in the fall as the flowers begin dying back.
Hairy skullcap
Hairy skullcap is a wildflower that is native to North America where it is found in dry or mesic environments. Some Native American tribes associate hairy skullcap with womanhood and use it in female-orientated ceremonies. It has also been used in folk medicine for various ailments.
Scientific Classification
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