Paul Sterry - British Wild Flowers - A photographic guide to every common species

Fruits

Clustered Dock Rumex conglomeratus HEIGHTto 1m

Upright perennial with a zigzag stem and spreading branches. Found in meadows and woodland margins, often on damp soil. FLOWERSIn leafy spik es. FRUITSSmall, untoothed, with 3 elongated tubercles (June–Aug). LEAVESOval; basal ones heart-shaped at base and often waisted. STATUSMostly common but rare in Scotland.

Fruit

Wood Dock

Fruits

Wood Dock Rumex sanguineus HEIGHTto 1m

Upright, straggly and branched perennial of grassy woodland rides and shady meadows. FLOWERSIn spikes; leafy only at the base (June–Aug). FRUITSWith a single elongated wart. LEAVESOval; basal ones heart-shaped at base, sometimes red-veined and never waisted. STATUSWidespread and common, mainly absent from Scotland.

Leaf

Fruit

Fiddle Dock

Fruits

Fiddle Dock Rumex pulcher HEIGHTto 30cm

Upright to spreading perennial with branches spreading at right angles. Favours well-drained soil, often near the coast. FLOWERSOn spikes in widely separated whorls (June–Aug). FRUITSToothed, with 3 tubercles. LEAVESTo 10cm, waisted and violin-shaped . STATUSLocal, and restricted to S England and S Wales.

Marsh Dock fruit

Golden Dock fruit

Golden Dock

Marsh Dock

Golden Dock Rumex maritimus HEIGHTto 70cm

Annual or biennial of muddy freshwater margins. Turns golden yellow in fruit . FLOWERSIn dense, widely separated whorls (June–Aug). FRUITSWith 3 tubercles and teeth longer than valves . LEAVESLanceolate. STATUSWidespread but local, mainly in the south. Marsh Dock R. palustris is similar but does not turn yellow ; fruit teeth shorter than valve .

See also Shore Dock

Springbeauty

Springbeauty Claytonia perfoliata (Portulacaceae) HEIGHTto 30cm

Annual, introduced from N America; naturalised on dry, sandy soil. FLOWERSWhite, 5-petalled, 5mm across; in loose spikes (Apr–July). FRUITSCapsules. LEAVESOval and stalked at the base; flowering stems bear fused pairs of perfoliate leaves. STATUSWidespread and locally abundant.

Pink Purslane

Pink Purslane Claytonia sibirica (Portulacaceae) HEIGHTto 30cm

Annual or perennial, introduced from N America. Favours damp woods. FLOWERSPink with darker veins, 5-petalled, 15–20mm across (Apr–July). FRUITSCapsules. LEAVESOval, stalked at the base; flowering stems carry opposite pairs of unstalked leaves. STATUSWidely naturalised.

Blinks

Blinks Montia fontana (Portulacaceae) USUALLY PROSTRATE

Low-growing, sometimes mat-forming plant of bare, damp ground; sometimes grows partly submerged in water. Stems sometimes reddish. FLOWERSTiny, white; in terminal clusters (May–Oct). FRUITSRounded capsules. LEAVESNarrow oval, opposite. STATUSWidespread and common but least so in the south.

Hottentot-fig

Hottentot-fig Carpobrotus edulis (Aizoaceae) CREEPING

Exotic-looking fleshy perennial, introduced from S Africa. Forms carpets on coastal cliffs and banks. FLOWERSUsually yellow (sometimes fade pinkish), 7–10cm across, many-petalled (May–Aug). FRUITSSwollen and succulent. LEAVESDark green, succulent, 3-sided, 6–7cm long and narrow. STATUSNaturalised in the south-west.

Fathen

Fat-hen

Flowers

Fat-hen Chenopodium album (Chenopodiaceae) HEIGHTto 1m

Upright, branched annual of disturbed arable land. Often has a mealy appearance . FLOWERSWhitish green, in leafy spikes (June–Oct). FRUITSRounded, and surrounded by 5 sepals, in a ring. LEAVESGreen, matt-looking due to a mealy coating; varying from oval to diamond-shaped. STATUSCommon. Fig-leaved Goosefoot C. ficifolium is similar but with fig-like leaves. The flowers are greenish (July–Oct). Local on clay in central and S England.

Red Goosefoot

Fig-leaved Goosefoot

Red Goosefoot

Flowers