Hedeoma acinoides has appeared in abundance after the inch of rain this past weekend.  

Blooming for a short time in the spring it is a delightful miniature spring annual.  Only an inch or three high, in these pictures, it has created delightful little patches that look like miniature forests.

Plant identification books such as Marshall Enquist’s Wildflowers of Texas say it can be up to 8 inches.  Common in the rocky limestones of the hill country this member of the Lamiaceae or mint family has a minty smell if you crush the leaves a little.

This is not the only member of the family Lamiaceae to be called Pennyroyal, several other genera have this common name. In Culpeppers Herbal the pennyroyal he refers to grows in damp areas and flowers at the end of August.