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Ledum (''ledon'', ancient Greek name of Cistus). ''Ericaceae''. Labrador Tea. Ornamental shrubs grown for their handsome white flowers and evergreen foliage.
Leaves alternate, short-petioled, entire: flowers rather small, 1/3 - 1/2 in. across, long-pedicelled, in terminal, umbel-like racemes; calyx-lobes and petals 5, spreading; stamens 5-10: caps, nodding, 5-celled, separating from the base into 5 valves, with many minute seeds. Four species in the arctic and cold regions of the northern hemisphere, all found in N. Amer. One of the few ericaceous genera with polypetalous flowers. The leaves. contain a volatile oil, with narcotic properties; the leaves. of ''L. groenlandicum '' are said to have been used during the War of Independence as a substitute for tea, hence the name "Labrador tea."
These plants are low, sometimes procumbent, shrubs with evergreen narrow leaves fragrant when bruised, and with handsome white flowers appearing in early summer. They are all hardy North, and well adapted for borders of evergreen shrubberies or for planting in swampy situations. They thrive as well in sunny as in partly shaded situations, and prefer a moist, sandy and peaty soil. Transplanting is easy, if the plants are moved with a sufficient ball of earth. Propagation is by seeds sown in spring in sandy peat and treated like those of azalea and rhododendron, the young plants growing but slowly; increased also by layers and division.
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