pedicularis canadensis - wood betony/forest lousewort

This is a colonial perennial that grows from 6 to 16 inches tall.  The leaves are basal or alternate on the stem with dark green, lanceolate to elliptic leaves that are 2 to 6 inches long and deeply pinnately lobed.  The leaves are reduced upward.  The flowers are pale yellow to deep maroon and may be bicolored.  The corolla is 2-lipped with a hood-like upper lobe.

This plant has a symbiotic relationship with a root fungus that helps it gather nutrients, so it should not be disturbed. 

The Wood Betony flowers in April to June.  It is found in moist to dry woods and barrens in the central and eastern US.