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Vitex angus-castus
Deciduous large shrub or small tree with distinctive palmately compound leaves. Profuse spikes of lavender flowers, blooming heavily in the early summer, and then sporadically throughout the summer and fall. Vitex is heat, drought and pest tolerant.
Shoreline of Belton Lake where it has naturalized all along the shore. This one was growing in limestone.
This tree is also known as Mexican lavender, monk's pepper, lilac chaste tree, hemp tree, sage tree, or Indian spice. It is a native of China and India, although long ago it became naturalized throughout certain areas of the United Stated. Records indicate that Vitex has been cultivated in the U.S. since 1670. Vitex has been used medicinally fir at least 2,500 years.
2 Comments
Apparently there has been a lot of selecting for larger blooms by plant breeders. What I found interesting about the plants I found along the shoreline was their variability. Some had large blooms, other smaller. Some grew very densely, others were more open. Clearly seed from a variety of forms had made its way down to the shore.
I have a Vitex tree in my garden, but our blooms are not as big. it is blooming right now. My leaves are variegated.