Lunaria annua L.

Lunaria annua, called honesty orannual honesty in English, is a tall (height about 1 m), hairy-stemmedbiennial plant native to the Balkans and south west Asia, and naturalized throughout Europe, North America, and parts of Asia. It has large, pointed oval leaves with marked serrations. The common name "honesty" arose in the 16th century, and it may be due to the translucent seed-pods which are like flattened pea-pods and borne on the plant through winter. In south-east Asia, it is called the "money plant" and in the United States it is commonly known as "silver dollars," "Chinese money," or "Chinese coins," because its seed pods have the appearance of silvery coins. In Denmark it is known as judaspenge and in The Netherlands as judaspenning (coins of Judas), an allusion to the story of Judas Iscariot and the thirty pieces of silver he was paid.

Photographer: Talbot, Michael. Publisher: Talbot, Michael.