Annual Honesty
Lunaria annua
The translucent, circular central membrane of the seed pod remains on the stem long after the seeds drop, resembling shiny silver coins, which earned the plant its common name 'Money Plant'.
- Scientific name
- Lunaria annua
- Taxonomy
- Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Brassicales › Brassicaceae › Lunaria
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Woodland margins, forest edges, hedgerows, and semi-shaded garden borders.
- Diet
- Autotrophic (produces energy via photosynthesis from sunlight, water, and soil minerals).
- Range
- Europe, North America, Western Asia, New Zealand
- Size
- 60 to 90 cm in height
- Lifespan
- 2 years (Biennial)
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat loss from intensive forestry management and competition from aggressive invasive groundcover species.
- Safe to approach?
- Annual Honesty is entirely harmless and safe to touch. Its flowers and seeds are non-toxic to humans. You can safely observe or harvest the dried, paper-thin seed pods for floral arrangements without any risk of stings, bites, or skin irritation.
Lunaria annua , called honesty or annual honesty in English, is a species of flowering plant native to the Balkans and south west Asia, and naturalized throughout the temperate world.
Photo: Kevin Krebs, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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