PlantFiles: Spotted Dead Nettle
Lamium maculatum 'Orchid Frost'

So far I have tired this plant three times. The first two times I planted them in part sun, and they died in the middle of the summer. I figured that maybe it was too much sun for them. I bought one this year and put it is full shade and it looked great for a few months but once the hot 90F plus weather came they died again. I was careful to make sure it was moist not not too wet. Maybe it will come back when the weather cools off so I gave it a neutral.

Have three small plants establishing in a mostly shaded north exposure (2 hours or so of morning sun). Lamium is a reliable groundcover for hard places like this, and the function here is to provide semi-evergreen carpet for a couple of monster hostas.

The color of the Orchid Frost blooms is what I treasure. Not purple, not pink, but true ORCHID. In morning sun, the color is warmed to a lavender pink. Late afternoon, in true shade, it blues toward purple. Both are lovely. But the color in the indirect light it gets most of the day here is an absolutely glorious balanced orchid, with bloom clusters large enough to be seen from the road. I can hardly wait to see it when it's filled in!

I love this little plant! I first discovered it last year and have propagated it all over our yard. Our soil is clay, ph of 7.4 to 7.6 and shady where this plant is growing. It successfully crowds out weeds and forms a dense mat. It is evergreen. Contrary to what it says above, there is no problem with letting it dry out between waterings. Sometimes ours gets no extra watering.

Give this a little time in the shaded areas (two or three morning hours of sun) and you have a striking, lush, thick carpet that is almost invasive. I use it near the watering hose path as it springs back from abuse and dog steps with ease.

I bought this plant in the winter of 2003/2004 from Park seed during a bulb/tuber clearance sale and while it did ok in a pot, it did not really take off until I planted it in the ground. It has spread unbelievably fast & is just starting to bloom. I have it in a moist area where sun does not touch it and it seems to be thriving. I am so in love with this plant! The 2 tone leaves really stand out from a distance. Even without the blooms this plant is a winner.

Also called White Nancy. This is a bright addition to a shade garden. It roots where the stems touch the ground and is a great trailing plant. This is the second variety Lamium that I own and this one is lovely.