British Wild Flowers: A photographic guide to every common species. Paul Sterry
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Small Nettle
Small Nettle Urtica urens (Urticaceae)
Similar to Common Nettle but smaller and annual. FLOWERS Pendulous catkins, male and female on same plant (June–Sep). FRUITS Superficially resembling female flowers. LEAVES Oval, with pointed tips, toothed; up to 4cm long; lower leaves shorter than their stalks. STATUS Widespread and locally common on disturbed ground.
Pellitory-of-the-wall
Pellitory-of-the-wall Parietaria judaica (Urticaceae)
Spreading, downy perennial with reddish stems. Colonises walls, roadsides and rocky ground. FLOWERS Clustered at leaf bases (June–Oct). FRUITS Clustered at leaf bases. LEAVES Oval, up to 5cm long and long-stalked. STATUS Widespread in England, Wales and Ireland; commonest in coastal areas and in the west.
Nettle, Birthwort and Knotweed Families
Cleave, Andrew
Mind-your-own-business
Mind-your-own-business Soleirolia soleirolii (Urticaceae)
Mat-forming perennial with wiry, threadlike stems. FLOWERS Minute, pink (May–Aug). FRUITS Minute, hard to discern. LEAVES Tiny, rounded, untoothed and evergreen. STATUS A garden escape, colonising walls and paths, mainly in the south-west.
Cleave, Andrew
Asarabacca
Asarabacca Asarum europaeum (Aristolochiaceae)
Evergreen perennial associated with shady banks and woodland margins. Creeping, hairy stems. In suitable locations, forms carpets often alongside ivy. FLOWERS Purplish brown, 15mm long, bell-shaped with 3 terminal lobes (May–Aug). FRUITS Brownish capsules. LEAVES Dark green, shiny, kidney-shaped. STATUS Native in a few locations but also naturalised.
Birthwort
Birthwort
Birthwort Aristolochia clematis (Aristolochiaceae)
Upright, unbranched perennial of scrubby places. FLOWERS Yellow, tubular, 20–30mm long, fetid-smelling, the swollen base trapping pollinating insects; in clusters (June–Aug). FRUITS Green, pear-shaped. LEAVES Heart-shaped, strongly veined. STATUS Rare and declining; a relict of cultivation for midwifery.
Hall, Jean
Japanese Knotweed
Japanese Knotweed Fallopia japonica (Polygonaceae)
Fast-growing, invasive perennial, quick to colonise roadsides and other wayside places; hard to eradicate. FLOWERS Whitish, in loose, pendulous spikes arising from leaf bases (Aug–Oct). FRUITS Papery. LEAVES Large, triangular, on red, zigzag stems. STATUS Alien, but now a widespread garden escape.
Knotgrass
Knotgrass Polygonum aviculare (Polygonaceae) HEIGHT to 1m (often prostrate)
Much-branched annual of bare soil and open ground. FLOWERS Pale pink, in leaf axils (June–Oct). FRUITS Nut-like, enclosed by the withering flower. LEAVES Oval, leathery, alternate with a silvery basal sheath; main stem leaves larger than those on side branches. STATUS Widespread and common.
Equal-leaved Knotgrass
Equal-leaved Knotgrass Polygonum arenastrum (Polygonaceae) PROSTRATE
Mat-forming annual of bare ground and disturbed soil. Superficially like Knotgrass. FLOWERS Pale pink, in leaf axils (June–Oct). FRUITS Nut-like, enclosed by the withering flower. LEAVES Oval, equal in size on main stem and side branches (cf. Knotgrass). STATUS Widespread and common.
Cleave, Andrew
Ray’s Knotgrass
Ray’s Knotgrass Polygonum oxyspermum (Polygonaceae)
Mat-forming annual of undisturbed coastal sand and shingle beaches. FLOWERS Pinkish white, in leaf axils (Aug–Sep). FRUITS Nut-like, protruding beyond the withering flower. LEAVES Oval, leathery, alternate, sometimes with slightly inrolled margins. STATUS Local and commonest in the west.