bugleweed, (genus Ajuga), genus of about 40 species of Eurasian plants of the mint family (Lamiaceae). Bugleweeds are commonly used in landscaping, and some creeping species, used as ground covers, are widely naturalized.
The plants, which can be annuals or perennials, have attractive flowers that lack the floral upper lip characteristic of the family. The simple leaves are arranged oppositely or in whorls along the often hairy square stem. The flowers are borne in dense inflorescences and produce nutlet fruits. Bugleweeds are susceptible to fungal rot in humid conditions and are vulnerable to infection by root-knot nematodes.
Carpet, or common, bugleweed (Ajuga reptans) forms colonies of rosettes of dark green oval leaves in damp meadows or woodlands. It produces short spikes of blue, or occasionally pink or white, flowers on stems up to 30 cm (12 inches) long and uses stolons (runners) to spread vegetatively. Ground pine, or yellow bugle (A. chamaepitys), is shorter and has yellow flowers and three-parted needlelike leaves that are pine-scented.