In late May, while walking along the Katy Crossing Trail at San Gabriel Park in Georgetown, I noticed a plant I hadn’t seen before. It stood well above the ground cover, with upright spikes of small pink-lavender flowers swaying in the breeze. With my long 200–600 mm lens, I stepped back a few paces and let it do the work, compressing the whole stand into the soft wash of green and lavender you see here.
I did not photograph any pollinators that day, but I have no doubt these flowers get plenty of visitors. I also caught an unmistakable mint scent as I leaned in closer. That scent, along with the square, downy stems, was my first clue. iNaturalist confirmed the rest: American Germander (Teucrium canadense), a native member of the mint family (Lamiaceae) that grows across nearly all of the lower 48 states and much of Canada.
American Germander is a perennial that spreads by underground rhizomes, which is why it so often shows up as a dense colony rather than a single plant. Gardeners sometimes call it aggressive for that reason. It likes its feet damp — moist thickets, ditches, woodland edges, and stream margins — so the banks of the San Gabriel River suit it well. The plants typically stand 1 to 4 feet (30–120 cm) tall, occasionally reaching about 5 feet (1.5 m). The opposite leaves are toothed, softly hairy, and up to 5 inches (13 cm) long, with a pale gray-white underside. In Texas, it blooms from May into August, and each spike opens from the bottom up, so a single stem carries open flowers below and tight buds above. You can see that clearly in the photo.
The flowers, each less than an inch (about 1–2 cm) long, are the real curiosity. Most mint-family flowers have two lips: a hood above and a landing platform below. In germander, the upper lip is so reduced — split into two small pointed lobes pushed off to the sides — that the flower looks as if it has only one lip. Instead of hiding under a hood, the stamens and style arch up and out over the broad, purple-spotted lower lip. That lower lip works as a landing pad: a bee settles on it to reach the nectar, and the exposed anthers brush pollen onto its back. Bumblebees, honey bees, leaf-cutter bees, and skipper butterflies are all regular customers. Deer and rabbits, on the other hand, leave the plant alone because its leaves are bitter.
The genus name has its own story. Teucrium is said to honor Teucer, a legendary king of Troy, who supposedly used a germander to treat stomach ailments. Closer to home, Native Americans steeped the leaves as a tea and used them as a poultice for sores.
What stays with me from that morning is how a plant can be common across an entire continent and still be new to me. It took a windy walk and a long lens to notice it standing there, tall and swaying, open to the sky. Now, I need to plan a return with my macro lens and capture the details in the flowers.
That is the story behind the shots. For more like this, enjoy these related stories: American Germander, FlowerHour, Georgetown, Katy Crossing, One Step, San Gabriel Park, Texas, and Wildflowers. Until the next shoot, keep chasing the light and the wonders it reveals.
- Posted for Terri’s Flower Hour #49.
- Posted for Pepper’s One Step at a Time #28.
Sources:
- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center — Native Plant Database, Teucrium canadense (American Germander) — https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=TECA3
- Minnesota Wildflowers — Teucrium canadense (Germander) — https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/germander
- GrowIt BuildIT — American Germander, Teucrium canadense — https://growitbuildit.com/american-germander-teucrium-canadense/
- Bleeding Heartland — Iowa Wildflower Wednesday: American or Canada Germander (quoting Illinois Wildflowers) — https://www.bleedingheartland.com/2021/07/21/iowa-wildflower-wednesday-american-or-canada-germander-wood-sage/
- Wikipedia — Teucrium canadense — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teucrium_canadense
- City of Georgetown, Texas — San Gabriel Park — https://parks.georgetown.org/san-gabriel-park/
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One Step at a Time #29 - Heavens Sunshine
Pingback: […] joined in with a lovely gallery from apples and berries to a lovely trail.Egidio captured beautiful American Germander reaching for the sky.A stunning gallery from Hackfall Wood was shared by Sarah.Pretty hints of fall […]
Pamela Zmija Photography
Beautiful capture Egidio!
Egidio Leitao
Thank you, Pam. I’m glad you liked them.
shoreacres
This is a flower that I see rather commonly, and look for each year in certain locations. What’s interesting is that in some places it has a companion species: coastal germander (Teucrium cubense). It’s shorter, with white flowers; they make a nice pairing.
Egidio Leitao
Linda, we’ve only been in this area for two years. Now that I know when this flower blooms, I’ll be looking for it every year. I can only imagine what a beautiful contrast there must be when the two species are side by side. Thanks for the feedback.
Steve Schwartzman
And look at the interesting etymology of germander:
https://www.ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=germander
Egidio Leitao
Very interesting indeed.
Terri Webster Schrandt
An amazing discovery and gorgeous shots, Egidio! So you could smell the mint? It’s a lovely and interesting flower!
Egidio Leitao
Thanks for the compliment, Terri. That mint scent is unmistakable. We have an Autumn Sage in our front yard that also has that minty scent.
margaret21
This does look a bit hard to miss, but once seen, I’m sure never forgotten! I nearly missed this post however. My email provider sent it directly to Spam. How log have I been following you??
Egidio Leitao
Margaret, that is what surprised me about this finding. How could I have missed it in previous years? I know now where it is and where it grows. About the misrouted email, it’s an internet mystery. Sometimes, I think it could be a word that triggers the false positive. I’ve had people who follow me as long as you have, and yet, their comments come up for approval once in a while. I’m glad you found the note. Thanks for writing.
Pepper
Two beautiful images taken at the perfect aperture to blur the background. Well done, Egidio.
Egidio Leitao
Thanks for saying so, Pepper. Using a long lens brings that benefit of blurring the background more easily.
Anita
A beautiful new discovery, Egidio! It’s amazing how something can be right there and still be completely new to us. That’s one of the things I find so rewarding about photography.
Egidio Leitao
Now, knowing when it blooms and where it can be found, I’ll be on the lookout for it when I’m on that trail. As you pointed out, it’s one of the rewarding things about photography. Thanks for the note, Anita.