Lunaria annua L.
honesty
Biennial, roots often swollen. Stems erect, leafy, hairy, branching above, to 1 m tall. Lvs cordate, acute, dark green, hairy, bluntly or coarsely dentate; lower lvs petiolate, opposite, 5-10-(20) × 3-5-(15) cm; upper lvs subsessile, alternate, 3-5-(8) × 1.5-3-(4) cm. Racemes to 30 cm long. Sepals hairy, 7-9 × 1.5-2.5 mm. Petals purple, rarely white, 15-22 × 6-8 mm. Silicle elliptic (lanceolate when immature), 2.5-4 × 2-3 cm, obtuse at both ends; carpophore 8-15 mm long; style 5-8 mm long. Seeds dark brown, 5-8 mm diam.
N.: Auckland, Palmerston North, Horowhenua, Wellington; S.: Canterbury (Christchurch, Banks Peninsula, Ashburton), Dunedin; St.
S.E. Europe 1940
Gardens and waste places, garden escape.
N.Z. plants belong to subsp. annua. White-flowered cvs are sometimes referred to as var. albiflora, but do not merit varietal rank.
