Belonging to the Alchemilla family, the Lady’s Mantle represents a genus of perennial herbs related with the rosaceous plants by sharing some of characteristics, and which originates from Europe, with a special focus on Great Britain.
The main point of attraction at the Lady’s Mantle flower is the leaves which it produces; they are numerous, creating the impression of abundant foliage, with round shapes and separated lobes. It is common for the leaves to be covered with dense hairs, making them look thick and resistant. The cultivation of the Lady’s Mantle has escaped the attention of cultivators many years, as they though the flower was lacking any decorative properties. Nowadays, this view has changed as most of the gardeners use it to delimitate their gardens as hedges or simply to create an impression of rich vegetation in their gardens, to create their own natural venue.
The highest height that a Lady’s mantle flower can reach has been registered at 24 inches, attaining this height only in its originating places, which include the regions of Northern Europe. The period of blooming is between late spring and until September, in exceptional cases up until October.
Even though it doesn’t show any outstanding colors or complicated flowering structures, the Lady’s mantle is a flower to desire in your garden, especially if we are considering the extremely easy nurturing process. The Lady’s mantle is not pretentious and it can grow almost anywhere, provided there’s a temperate climate. The flower prefers moist, well-drained soils and is not very keen on high temperatures or too much sun exposure, the shade being amongst its most benefic environments. Easily nurtured, the only thing you have to take into consideration when cultivating it, is it’s position, as the Lady’s mantle flower occupies a larger space than most of the flowers and it needs ground to expand its rich foliage.
Normally found in the wild, on pastures and green lands, the Lady’s mantle flower has served as food for sheep and cattle over the years, not only because of its nutritive and succulent leaves, but also for its edible root.
Another purpose of this flower is its medicinal purpose as the flower has been documented to have used as astringent used at stopping the bleeding of abnormal menstruation, at treating ulcers, and even diarrhea. Amongst the active substances contained by this flower we can enumerate: salicylic acid and tannins.
As we mentioned before, this plant has no decorative eccentricities, but people have learned to appreciate it anyway. Its rich and thick foliage can make any garden abundant in vegetation and its medicinal properties are not to neglect. People in different cultures believe that the dew accumulated on the leaves of the Lady’s mantle flower has cosmetic effects and improves skin’s properties, of course, this is only the folklore speaking. The main attribution of this flower still remains its ability to recreate nature even in the dullest and grayest of urban areas.
Lady’s Mantle Flower Pictures Gallery
