Japanese name: ホトケノザ（仏座） Scientific name:Lamium amplexicaule
[Overview]
A biennial 10–30 cm tall, found along roadsides and in fields.
The stem is erect, branches at the base, and is square in cross-section.
Leaves are simple and opposite.
The upper leaves on the stem are fan-shaped semicircles, 1–2.5 cm both in length and width, without stalks and with rounded teeth.
The lower leaves on the stem have leaf stalks.
The flowers form whorls in the upper leaf axils and are reddish purple.
The corolla is lipped, 17–20 mm long, with a long tubular base, and blooms upright.
There are two types: open flowers and closed flowers that do not open.
The calyx is densely hairy.
The fruit splits into mericarps.
[Notes]
The Hotoke-no-za of the Seven Herbs of Spring is Ko-onitabirako, which belongs to the Asteraceae.
