Water Forget-me-not
Myosotis scorpioides
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The flower spike uncoils as it opens, like a scorpion's tail — hence the name.
A creeping and sprawling perennial of wet ground with oblong hairy leaves and sprays of small sky-blue flowers, each with a yellow eye. It is the largest-flowered of our wild forget-me-nots. Water forget-me-not grows at pond and loch margins, along ditches, burn sides and in marshy ground throughout the Dumfries area.
Behaviour
The flower spike is coiled tightly at the tip when young and unrolls gradually as the flowers open in sequence — the scorpioides of its name. It roots freely from creeping stems at the water's edge and can form broad mats over wet mud. The flowers are worked by hoverflies and small bees, and the plant is a common and easy addition to garden ponds.
When to see it
Quick facts
- Family
- Borages (Boraginaceae)
- Height
- 15–45 cm
- Status
- Native; common at water margins
Photo by Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons