- Small profile of the forget-me-not
- Where does the name forget-me-not come from?
- The location and flowering time depend on the variety
- Ornamental plant only since the 19th century
Small sky-blue, rarely white, pink or yellow flower stars - this is the distinguishing feature of the forget-me-not. The plant from the borage family is usually grown as a spring flower in the garden or in a pot. A profile of the popular garden plant.
Forget-me-not is also called blue eyebright
Small profile of the forget-me-not
- Botanical name: Myosotis
- Common names: Blue eyebright
- Family: borage family
- Occurrence: Europe, Asia, Africa, North America
- Species: 50 species, 41 of them in Europe
- Leaves: green, rough, hairy
- Flowers: 5 sepals, arranged in the shape of a bell or funnel
- Flower color: mainly light blue, less often white, pink, yellow
- Flowering time: depending on the species from April to September
- Propagation: seeds, root division, cuttings
- Height: 10 to 50 cm, some species up to 80 cm
- Age: annual, biennial, perennial
- Toxicity: few toxins in a non-toxic concentration
- Hardiness: absolutely hardy
Where does the name forget-me-not come from?
The name has been documented since the 15th century. Among other things, it is traced back to a legend in which the delicate plant asked God not to forget it.
Forget-me-not is also considered a flower of loyalty and farewell in love.
The location and flowering time depend on the variety
The non-poisonous forget-me-not is one of the spring flowers, as the varieties most commonly grown in the garden or in tubs are derived from the forest forget-me-not. They have their main flowering period in May.
The forget-me-not is also popular as a planting on the bank edge. For this purpose, the swamp forget-me-not is grown as a perennial perennial.
In nature, the most favorable location for forget-me-nots is shady to semi-shady. The perennial does not tolerate direct sun well. The ground must never dry out completely and may be swampy in the case of the swamp forget-me-not.
Ornamental plant only since the 19th century
Forget-me-not was considered a wild plant over the centuries, which was also used as a medicinal plant.
It was not until the 19th century that the flower was grown in gardens as an ornamental plant. The cultivated forms used here come from either the forest forget-me-not or the swamp forget-me-not.
Although forget-me-nots can be grown indoors, they are not suitable as houseplants.
tips
The ornamental plant bears the trivial name forget-me-not, which is based on a legend, not only in the German language. In English it is called Forget-me-not. In the past, the plant was popularly referred to as male-loyal, just like the lobelia.