Lady's Mantle

Let the image of the lady's mantle speak to you! Are many more words really necessary about the signature of this plant? The vessel-forming folding of the leaf speaks for itself and has surely repeatedly given reason to cite the lady's mantle as a convincing example of the signature doctrine. In this respect, the lady's mantle is an exception, as the signatures of most plants require a much more differentiated consideration.

The liquid secreted by the fine hairs on the leaf edge, which gathers into a silver drop at the leaf base, also speaks a clear language. Alchemilla owes its name to the high regard in which it was held by earlier alchemists. The dewdrop from its leaf base was collected by them and used as a starting substance for making elixirs. In a way, it is the alchemist among plants.

Some further botanical characteristics also express the essence of the plant. The fruit is enclosed by a soft, smooth calyx cup, but unlike other genera and species in the Rosaceae family, it is not fused with it. Thus, the fruit develops protected, as though in a womb.

Most of the numerous species of the genus Alchemilla are apomictic, meaning they develop fruits without fertilisation. They do not develop normal pollen, and the anthers do not burst, so the pollen is not released. The lady's mantles are very species-rich and often differ only by hard-to-recognise characteristics. The exact identification of a plant is usually very time-consuming – even for experienced botanists – often even confusing, and generally only possible once the plant has already formed fruits.

At first glance, one might think that the Alchemilla species are not clearly defined and subject to strong variability, meaning their traits slightly change over generations. However, the opposite is true. According to the specialist book «Flora der Schweiz» by Hess, Landolt, Hirzel: “Of all specialists of the genus Alchemilla, the constancy of the small species differences over large geographical areas is described as a unique example among flowering plants.” The Alchemilla species are therefore – despite their difficult-to-discern diversity – extraordinarily stable in their form; they are self-contained. The life-preserving essence is also reflected in the fact that the plant contains strongly antioxidant substances.