In Ky. and elsewhere, this southeastern species occurs in dry rocky woodland and clifftops, especially on base-rich soils (W). In Ky. urticifolia is verified only from one locality, with two small patches on open limestone clifftops in PULA (,APSC, EKY, KY), along the South Fork Cumberland Rv. (Palmer-Ball et al. 1988). There have been problems in distinction of urticifolia from the more western species, T. betonicifolia Nutt. (= T. urticifolia var. texana), and there may be continuing uncertainty where ranges overlap. Although distinction between these taxa is somewhat cryptic, they may be justified as separate species. Most colls. named urticifolia from Mo. and Tenn. have also been redetermined as betonicifolia (St, p. 1727; Y; D. Estes, pers. comm.). According to Correll & Johnson (1970), FNA 12 and W, betonicifolia differs as follows: staminate pedicels are 0.7-1 mm long when fresh (versus 1.5-2 mm), with the persistent base only 0.3-0.6 mm long, shorter than bracts (versus 1-1.8 mm, at least as long as bracts); also, stigmatic surfaces are less papillate and styles are less connate; pistillate sepals are 1.8-5 mm long (versus 1.3-2.3 mm); racemes have 14-75 flowers (only the proximal one pistillate), more distally clustered (versus 11-40 flowers, evenly distributed); plants are erect to trailing, often with multiple branches from the crown (versus usually erect with single stems). M. Brock (pers. comm.) has recently clarified the status of these two taxa in Tenn. and Ky., confirming that the Ky. plants are true urticifolia. The only verified records of betonicifolia east of the Mississippi may be from central and eastern Tenn.