Lunaria (Honesty)

Common Name: Money plant, Honesty, Bolbonac, Silver dollar, Penny flower, Moneywort, Moonwort
Family: Brassicaceae
Native Region: SE Europe and western Asia
Plant type: biennial
Height: from 24-30 inches up to 3 feet (30-100 cm)
Width: 30 cm
Flowering: April to June.
Light: Full sun to partial shade with excellent drainage.

Description:
Most honesty plants are biennials, with well-branched and deeply penetrating root systems, on which develop small tubers containing overwintering carbohydrate reserves. Leaves are initially produced in pairs: they are roughly heart-shaped, with toothed margins, bright green in spring and summer but darker during the winter months. Stems elongate in early spring, often reaching a height of 90 cm (or more in the most favourable circumstances); leaves are arranged alternately up the stem. Flowering may commence in late March or April; the flowers, individually stalked, are usually purple but may be white or parti-coloured, and are produced in groups at the top of the main stem and branches. The green seedpods are large, circular and flattened and are firmly attached to the stem. The flat green seedpods often take on a purple colouration during the ripening process, which is usually complete by early August. The outer cases and seeds then fall away, leaving the intermediate membranes still attached to the plants as the 'silver penny' popular in floral arrangements. This plant attracts butterflies.

Cultivation:
Lunaria are easy to grow and require little to no attention. They can be grown in almost any soils and thrive in partial and shady areas. They should have at least four to six hours of sunshine. Once your Lunaria is started, you can largely leave it to itself. Water them only during droughts when the soil has dried out. You can also add a general purpose fertilizer once a month if growth seems slow and especially in very poor soils. After the small flowers have bloomed in early summer, flat green pods develop and the seed is inside. Over the summer months the pods and stalks will dry and turn a golden brown color. For dried flower arrangements, cut the stalks low to the ground. For drying, hang Silver Dollars upside down in dry, dark, open, airy place. Work carefully so you do not break the pods off the stalks. When putting the arrangement together, trim the stalks to the desired length.

Plants will not flower in spring unless they have been overwintered as well-established plants. The plant requires a cold temperature vernalisation period of at least 10 weeks at 5°C to induce maximum flower production. Sowing dates must therefore be sufficiently early to allow plants to grow sufficiently large before the onset of winter. Mid July and early August have been suggested as the latest safe sowing dates in Europe.

The plant requires to be sown at a depth of 25 to 35 mm to ensure adequate establishment, shallower sowings were particularly susceptible to plant loss post-emergence. Field establishment was variable with best establishment in early August under moist soil conditions.

Propagation: Sow direct or germinate at 70F.

Species: Lunaria annua, Lunaria biennis

Other info:
- It contains 30-40% oil which is rich in long chain fatty acids e.g. erucic and nervonic, which make it potentially suitable for production of high-temperature lubricants and engineering nylons, possibly also some pharmaceutical preparations.
- Considered to be a plant with magical powers, gathered by moonlight and used by necromancers in their incantations to raise the dead.