Chelone lyonii

Native to the southeastern United States, pink turtlehead is a clump-forming perennial of wet woods and stream banks in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Its upright stems reach two to four feet tall. Opposite, egg-shaped leaves have rounded bases, pointed tips and sharply toothed edges, with paler undersides. Dense flower clusters develop at the stem tips from late summer into fall. The deep pink to rose-purple flowers have a hooded upper lip and a lower lip bearded with yellow hairs, giving them their turtlehead shape. Oval seed capsules turn from green to brown and split open at maturity. The plant is cultivated in woodland gardens and moist borders. Photographed in Virginia.