The WALA Plant Library

Synonyms for Borage: Burrage, Starflower, Common Bugloss, Beebread, Bee Plant.
Scientific Name: Borago officinalis L.
Family: Boraginaceae


From June to August a shining blue sea of flowers that appears covered with a shimmering mist is visible far and wide. Burrage? Borage? The names are far less enchanting than the appearance, which captivates the beholder. When you look more closely you are tempted to turn upside down to get a proper look at this exotic-looking flower, copying the bees which hang head downwards on the lips of the nectarrich flowers. The flowers, which appear almost to come from another world, stand in thick clusters with their heads nodding towards the ground. With the pistils and anthers forming a prominent cone in the centre, the flowers look almost like insect heads surrounded like a star by five green and five delicate, brilliant blue petals. This annual herb, which grows to a height of 60 centimetres, is covered all over with very fine, stiff hairs, socalled bristles, which shine in the sunlight like glittering mist and protect the otherwise sensitive delicate plant.