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Water Forget-Me-Not

Water Forget-Me-Not

Myosotis scorpioides

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How common: Common

Water Forget-Me-Not is a blue-flowered wildflower of wet places. It is a perennial 15–50 cm tall, often growing right at the water’s edge or even in shallow water. You can see it along streams, ponds, ditches and wet meadows across much of Eurasia.

Did you know?

  • Its scientific name means “scorpion‑like,” referring to the curled flower stalk that unrolls as it blooms.
  • Garden forms exist, but the wild plant naturally prefers very wet, nutrient‑rich ground.

About the species

Identification

Perennial 15–50 cm tall. Stems upright or leaning, angular, smooth or softly hairy. Leaves narrow‑oval with smooth edges. Flower sprays start as a tight curl and unroll as they open. Flowers are flat, five‑petalled, usually bright blue (sometimes white or lilac), about 6–9 mm across, with a small pale eye in the center. Later it forms four small, smooth, shiny black seeds. Larger‑flowered than most forget‑me‑nots and typically grows right by water. Flowers in Finland from June to August.

Plant group

Herbaceous plants

Habitat

shore

Flowering

Jun–Aug

About the habitat

Grows along river and lake shores, springs, ditches, marshy meadows and wet woodland. Prefers constantly wet, nutrient‑rich soil and can root in shallow water. Common in southern and central Finland; scarcer further north and absent from northernmost Lapland.

Sources

Photo: Cbaile19, CC0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Myosotis scorpioides, 2020-10-14, Wexford, 01.jpg

Text: Pinkka: Laaja maatalouslajintuntemus 4 op - Koppisiemeniset, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.39433

Text: Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luhtalemmikki

See also