Lungwort
Lungwort on waste ground, Lancaster
Flowerhead and leaf
Range of colours
Blue flower with capitate stigma
Pink flower with stigma
5 stamens below stigma
Side view of calyx
Leaves - white markings, hairy margins
Hairy flower stem
Pulmonaria officinalis
Common Lungwort
Boraginaceae
It flowers mainly from February to May but it was
flowering in January in Dorset in 2020.
It is found throughout the country, but is most common
in the South and least common in the Northeast.
See the BSBI distribution map for Lungwort
It is a neophyte and is widely planted in gardens from
where it readily escapes to colonise waste ground
and cracks in pavements.
It has been naturalised in woods, hedges, and waste
ground for over 400 years.
Lungwort is a rhizomatous, perennial herb, growing
up to 30cm.
The flowers are up to 1cm and composed of 5 fused
petals, which form a tube within the calyx and an
expanded corolla above it.
Flower buds start off pink and change colour on
opening and ageing. They range from various shades
of pink and blue, and occasionally white.
The capitate stigma is prominent.
The 5 stamens are at the base of the flower, above
the tube.
The calyx is made up of 5 fused lanceolate sepals
with the ends protruding as teeth.
Leaves are deep green with mamy irregular pale spots.
The stems are covered in downy hairs.
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Lungwort on waste ground, Lancaster
Flowerhead and leaf
Range of colours
Blue flower with capitate stigma
Pink flower with stigma
5 stamens below stigma
Side view of calyx
Leaves - white markings, hairy margins
Hairy flower stem
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