Selfheal 'Blue Pearl' Prunella 'Blue Pearl'

👤 Non-toxic to humans

🐾 Non-toxic to pets

🌸 Blooming

🍪 Edible

‍🌱 Easy-care

ABOUT

'Blue Pearl' is a spreading perennial to 30cm, with rooting stems bearing oblong or ovate leaves and short, erect spikes of deep violet-blue, tubular flowers in summer and early autumn

Plant Info

Care

Common Problems

About this plant

Names
- Family
  Lamiaceae.
- Synonyms
  Self-Heal, Heal-All, Woundwort, Heart-of-the-Earth, Carpenter's Herb, Brownwort, Blue Curls.
- Common names
  Prunella 'Blue Pearl'.
Characteristics
- Life cycle
  Perennials
- Foliage type
  Deciduous
- Color of leaves
  Green
- Flower color
  Violet
- Height
  0.5-2 feet (15-60 cm)
- Spread
  1-2 feet (30-60 cm)
- Plant type
  Herb
- Hardiness zones
  4-9
- Native area
  Europe

Benefits

General Benefits
- Attracts pollinators: The flowers of Prunella 'Blue Pearl' are known to attract bees and butterflies, which are essential for pollination.
- Low maintenance: This plant requires minimal care once established, making it an ideal choice for gardeners looking for low-effort landscaping options.
- Drought tolerant: Once established, Prunella 'Blue Pearl' can tolerate periods of drought, reducing the need for frequent watering.
- Ground cover: The low-growing habit and spreading nature of this plant make it an excellent choice for ground cover, helping to suppress weeds and reduce soil erosion.
- Long blooming period: It has a long flowering season, providing continuous color and visual interest in the garden throughout the summer months.
- Aesthetic appeal: With its vibrant blue flowers and lush green foliage, this plant adds beauty and charm to any garden space.
- Resists deer: Prunella 'Blue Pearl' is generally resistant to deer, which makes it suitable for gardens in areas where deer are a common problem.
Medical Properties
- Anti-inflammatory: Prunella vulgaris, known as Self-heal, is traditionally used for its potential anti-inflammatory effects.
- Antiviral: The plant has been studied for its potential antiviral activity against viruses like herpes simplex.
- Wound healing: Self-heal has been historically applied to wounds to promote healing.
- Immune system support: Some herbalists recommend Self-heal to support the immune system.
- Antimicrobial: Components of Prunella vulgaris may have antimicrobial properties against certain bacteria and fungi.
- Antioxidant: The plant is also investigated for its antioxidant content, which may offer protective health benefits.
Please note that medical uses are based on traditional usage and scientific research may be limited. Always consult with a healthcare provider before using any medicinal plant for health purposes.
Air-purifying Qualities
This plant is not specifically known for air purifying qualities.
Other Uses
- As a fabric dye: The blue and purple flowers of the Prunella plant can be used to produce a natural dye for coloring fabrics or yarns, offering a sustainable alternative to synthetic dyes.
- In crafting potpourri: The fragrant leaves and flowers can be dried and added to potpourri mixes for a pleasant, natural aroma within the home.
- As a floral garnish: The attractive flowers can be used to garnish desserts, salads, or cold refreshment drinks for a touch of elegance and color.
- In companion planting: Prunella can be planted alongside vegetables and other garden plants to attract beneficial insects and enhance garden biodiversity.
- As a natural fabric softener: When used in a rinse cycle, the leaves can provide a gentle softening effect on laundry.
- In pressed flower crafts: The flowers of Prunella retain their color well when pressed, making them suitable for use in bookmarks, greeting cards, and other crafts.
- As a flowerbed border: Planting Prunella as a low-growing border can give a garden a neat, organized look as well as add a splash of color.
- In educational projects: Prunella plants can be used in school gardens or biology projects to teach children about plant growth, pollination, and the ecology of garden ecosystems.
- For insect-repelling purposes: The essential oils within Prunella may help to naturally repel certain insect pests in the garden.
- In landscape photography: The lush, colorful mats of Prunella can provide a captivating foreground or point of interest in landscape and garden photography.

Interesting Facts

Feng Shui
The plant Self-heal is not used in Feng Shui practice.
Zodiac Sign Compitability
The plant Self-heal is not used in astrology practice.
Plant Symbolism
- Healing - Prunella, commonly known as self-heal or heal-all, is often associated with medicinal properties and the ability to heal wounds, representing recovery and the power to overcome physical challenges.
- Protection - Due to its healing associations, self-heal is also symbolically linked to protection, safeguarding one from harm and illness.
- Perseverance - This plant is known for its hardiness and ability to thrive in a variety of conditions, making it a symbol of perseverance and resilience in adverse situations.
- Unity - Self-heal has a harmonizing effect in the garden, symbolizing unity and bringing together different elements in a cohesive manner.

💧

Every 1-2 weeks

Water

☀️

2500 - 10000 Lux

Light

💦️

Humidity

🪴

Every 2-3 years

Repotting

🌱️

Spring-Early Summer

Propogation

✂️️

As needed

Pruning

Water
Self-heal, commonly known as Prunella 'Blue Pearl', should be watered deeply once a week during the growing season, ensuring that the soil is moist but not waterlogged. During periods of extreme heat or dryness, increase watering to twice per week. Each watering should be thorough, allowing water to penetrate the soil to a depth of at least an inch. In the winter months, reduce watering frequency as the plant's growth slows down and its water requirements decrease. It's essential to use approximately one gallon of water per plant per watering session to maintain the right soil moisture level.
Light
Self-heal thrives best in full sun to partial shade conditions. It's ideal to place Prunella 'Blue Pearl' in a spot where it can receive at least four to six hours of direct sunlight each day. If growing indoors, a south-facing window is a good location for it to get adequate light.
Temperature
Self-heal can withstand a wide range of temperatures, but it grows best in conditions between 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Prunella 'Blue Pearl' can tolerate minimum temperatures down to about 0 degrees Fahrenheit, and heat up to about 90 degrees Fahrenheit, though it prefers the cooler range of this spectrum for optimal growth.
Pruning
Pruning self-heal encourages more compact growth and can stimulate blooming. Prune Prunella 'Blue Pearl' in the spring to remove any dead or damaged foliage and again after the first wave of blooming to promote a second bloom. Deadheading throughout the season is also beneficial to maintain a tidy appearance and encourage further flowering.
Cleaning
As needed
Soil
Self-heal 'Blue Pearl' thrives best in well-drained soil with rich organic matter. The ideal pH for this plant ranges from neutral to slightly acidic, around 6.0 to 7.0. A mixture consisting of garden soil, compost, and a small amount of perlite or sand can ensure good drainage and fertility.
Repotting
Self-heal ‘Blue Pearl’ should be repotted every 2-3 years or when it has outgrown its current container. Spring is the best time for repotting to allow the plant to establish in the growing season.
Humidity & Misting
Self-heal ‘Blue Pearl’ prefers moderate humidity levels but is quite adaptable and can tolerate a range of humidity conditions typically found in outdoor environments.
Suitable locations
- Indoor
  Place in bright, indirect light, maintain moist soil.
- Outdoor
  Sun to partial shade, moist, well-drained soil.
- Hardiness zone
  4-9 USDA
Life cycle
Prunella 'Blue Pearl', also known as Self-heal or Heal-all, begins its life cycle as a seed, which, when conditions are favorable—typically in spring—germinates in moist, well-draining soil. After germination, the seedling starts to develop roots and shoots, slowly forming a compact rosette of leaves at ground level. As the plant matures, it sends up flowering stems from late spring to summer, bearing dense spike-like inflorescences of violet-blue flowers that are attractive to pollinators. Following pollination, the flowers produce seeds which can be dispersed by wind or animals, allowing the plant to propagate and spread in suitable habitats. Throughout the growing season, Prunella 'Blue Pearl' can also spread vegetatively by sending out stolons that root at nodes, forming new clumps of the plant. In regions with cold winters, Prunella 'Blue Pearl' will become dormant, dying back to the ground until favorable growing conditions return in the spring.
Propogation
- Propogation time
  Spring-Early Summer
- The self-heal 'Blue Pearl', commonly known as Prunella 'Blue Pearl', is often propagated by division, which is the most popular method for this perennial plant. This typically takes place in the spring or early fall. To propagate by division, you carefully dig up the plant and gently separate the clump into smaller sections, making sure each has a portion of the root system. These sections are then replanted into their new locations, spaced approximately 12 inches (about 30 centimeters) apart to give them room to grow. The soil should be kept moist until the new divisions have established themselves, which generally takes a few weeks.