Lunaria annua var.albiflora
(White-flowered Honesty)
Family - Brassicaceae
Category - Annual, biennial
Origin - Europe
Season of Interest - Spring, Summer
Hardiness - H6
Height - 75cm or more
Width - 30cm
Location - The White Garden
Description: An annual or Biennial with a bushy, upright habit. Mid to dark green leaves are ovate to heart-shaped with pointed tips and coarsely toothed margins. Cross-shaped flowers are a shade of creamy white and have slightly lax petals. The Blooms are held in panicles on upright stems and are produced from late spring into early summer. The flowers are followed by round seedheads that become silvery in colour and translucent with age. Attractive to pollinating insects and good for use as cut flowers.
Award of Garden Merit (AGM).
The seedheads are excellent for drying if cut while still green.
The genus name Lunaria is a reference to the moon-like appearance of the seedheads.
Additional common names Satin Flower, Money Plant, Moonwort
Flower:
Cruciform flowers with slightly lax petals are a shade of creamy white. The flowers are held in upright panicles and are produced in May and June. The flowers are followed by attractive, round seedheads that become silvery in colour and translucent with age.
Flower colour: White
Flower shape: Cruciform flowers held in panicles
Flowering time: May, June
Foliage:
Mid to dark green leaves are ovate to Cordate in shape with pointed tips and Dentate margins. The leaves can be held in opposite pairs or Alternately arranged on the upright stems. The foliage is Evergreen during the winter months when grown as a Biennial.
Foliage Senescence: Deciduous to evergreen
Foliage Shape: Ovate to Cordate
Propagation:
Seed.
Cultivation:
Best in full sun to partial shade in fertile, moisture-retentive soil that is well-drained.