Family: valerian (Valerianaceae)
Flowering time: May–June
Size: 10–30 cm
Habitat: moist and marsh meadows and low bogs
Egg-shaped basal leaves of the dioecious valerian (Valeriana dioica) are stalked and undivided – they are simple. The erect stem is leafy with one to five pairs of pinnately divided leaves. At the base of the stem this species sends out lateral shoots – offsets. The plants are, as the name already indicates, dioecious. On one plant the inflorescence consists only of female flowers, on the other plant only male flowers. In the male flowers only stamens are developed, in the female flowers only pistils. The male flowers of the dioecious valerian are pink, about 3 mm long; the female flowers are white and about 1 mm long.
The dioecious valerian grows on moist, moderately fertile soils scattered throughout Slovenia. In the extreme western part of the country it is rare.
