Showy Skullcap Scutellaria serrata

Showy skullcap is a native perennial wildflower in the Lamiaceae (mint) family that can be found growing in dry, rich open woods, thickets or clearings, typically on west-facing slopes in the piedmont or mountain regions of North Carolina.   The common name skullcap comes from the shape of the caylx at the base of the flower resembling a skull.

Plant in full sun to filtered shade with well-draining moist to dry soil.  This skullcap is more tolerant of shade than other members of this genus. It is adaptable to a wide range of soil pH. The rounded clumps reach a height and width of 1 to 2 feet.

t has blue spikes of showy flowers that bloom later in the spring  and into the summerproviding a pop of color after most other wildflowers have faded.  The opposite leaves on square stems, as typical of the mint family, have some purple around the margins as they age turning an attractive purple color in the fall.  Though it is a member of the mint family it does not the pungent odor common to mint when the leaves are crushed.

Growing in clumps and patches, it does not spread by stolons or rhizomes.  Mass plant it or let it naturalize in a woodland garden, or plant it along a border front.  

Insects, Diseases and Other Plant Problems: No significant diseases or insect damage.  Development, logging, and clearing in mountain forests are a detriment to this plant.