Common name: Lion's Ear, Annual lion's ear, Christmas candlestick • Hindi: बड़ा गूमा Bara guma, लाल गूमा Lal guma • Marathi: दीपमाल Deepmal • Telugu: Hanumantabira, Mulagolimedi • Kannada: goa gadde, kaaduthumbe, ranabheri, deepa shoole • Oriya: Barcha • Sanskrit: Granthi, granthika, Granthiparna, Granthiparni
Botanical name: Leonotis nepetifolia Family: Lamiaceae (Mint family) Synonyms: Phlomis nepetifolia
Lion's Ear is an erect, branched herb that can grow 8 ft tall. The stems
are strongly 4-angled. Oppostely arranged are smooth with coarsely toothed
margins, triangular in shape and 2-5 in long. The flowers are borne in
rounded, spiny clusters, 2-4 in across, that encircle the stems so that it
looks like the stems are growing right through the middle of the clusters.
As the stems elongate, new flower clusters continue to develop above the
older ones. Orange, furry, tubular flowers that emerge out of the spiny
heads look like a lion's ear, with some imagination. The flowers are about
1 in long and curve downward. Lion's Ear originated in tropical Africa,
but is now naturalized world wide.
Flowering: November-December.
Identification credit: Prashant Awale
| Photographed en route to Pench Reserve Forest, Maharashtra. |
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