Clasping Heliotrope

amplexicaule: clasping the stem, referring to the leaves.

Erect perennial herb, up to 50 cm tall, often forming extensive clumps Leaves alternate or sessile, elliptic-oblong, 4-9 cm long, roughly hairy, particularly on the vains; margins with widely spaced shallow teeth, distinctly wavy. Flowers in terminal heads of several curved, one-sided spikes (scorpioid cymes). Corolla bright purple with an orange-yellow throat. Fruit in small paired nutlets with a rough surface.

Locally very common.

Native to Argentina but introduced and naturalized in other tropical regions; a declared weed in Australia.