Lunaria - Moonwort, Honesty, Silver Dollars

This week’s Plant of the Week is Lunaria, common names Silver Dollars, Honesty or Moonwort. Lunaria is widely recognizable in the fall when it has produced seed and the translucent, moon-shaped seed pods cover the plant; however, it is quite lovely while in full bloom. Botanical Name: Lunaria Common Name: Moonwort, Honesty, Silver Dollars Plant Type: Usually grown as a biennial (i.e. sown as seed one year to flower the following year) Size: 3’ tall and 1’ wide Habitat: Native to the Balkans and south-west Asia it has naturalized in temperate climates throughout the world. Bloom Time: Spring Lunaria means moon shaped and refers to the shape of the translucent seed pods for which the plant is often grown. The other common names given to the plant also stem from the appearance of the seeds; ‘Silver Dollars’ in the US for the resemblance to silver coins, ‘Honesty’ in the UK for the translucent seed pods and ‘monnaie du pape’ (Pope’s money) in France.