What is a Bluebell?

Bluebells are in the Asparagus family, their Latin name is Hyacinthoides non-scripta.  It’s no surprise that they’re relatives of the garden hyacinth, they share the same heady scent.

They are monocots; a division of plant that includes all the grasses, lilies, orchids, and tulips.  Shared characteristics include leaves with parallel veins, the distinct growth pattern of a seedling from a one-grained seed, fibrous roots, and flowers without differentiated sepals and petals.  These in-between structures are known as tepals.

Monocot plant variety with seedling in centre

Bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta

The native Bluebell can grow up to 30cm tall.

It has glossy green strap-like leaves which are 7 – 15mm wide, with a pointed tip.  They can be 45cm long and there tend to be 3 to 6 leaves per plant. These start erect, but may flop and twist as the plant grows.

Illustrating a Bluebell leaf

The flowers are all on one side of the stalk, which often curves and droops at the top.  When mature, individual flowers dangle; as buds they can be more erect, often flushed with green.

Sketchbook study of Bluebell flowers

The flower shape is bell-like, but with parallel sides, and only opening at the mouth of the flower.  Each flower has 6 tepals, and tepal tips are strongly recurved which gives the plants that distinct frilly appearance.  They tend to be a deeper, darker blue than other Bluebell species.

Bluebell flower Hyancinthoides non-scripta

Anthers and the pollen they produce is a pale cream.

This matters because there are other species of Bluebell which can be confusingly similar.

Spanish Bluebell Hyacinthoides hispanica

The Spanish bluebell has flowers that grow all around the stem, and which point upwards.  They are often a far paler blue than H. non-scripta.  At maturity they gape with a much wider mouth than the native species.  Anthers are dark blue.  Leaves are significantly wider, up to 35mm across.

Spanish bluebell Hyacinthoides hispanica

Hybrid Bluebell Hyacinthoides x massartiana

Recently botanists have come to the conclusion that most flowers sold, and grown in gardens, are not Spanish Bluebell at all, but various hybrids.  This is because there is so much H. non-scripta pollen in the air that cross-fertilization, and back cross-breeding is almost inevitable. (Cumbria Botany – Telling Bluebells apart)

Hybrid Bluebells have erect stems with flowers growing all around them.  The mature flowers may droop, but don’t dangle vertically down as with H. non-scripta.  

Flowering spikes of native Bluebell H. non-scripta vs  the Hybrid Bluebell H. x massartiana

The mouth opens wider than the native species, but less wide than H. hispanica.  Tepal tips don’t curve back on themselves as much as with H. non-scripta, and anthers and pollen vary in colour from blue to dark grey, to a dirty pale yellow.  The flowers have a far weaker scent than the native Bluebell.

Hybrid bluebell Hyacinthoides x massartiana

For more on this, check out these useful guides to telling Bluebell species apart: Webidguides, and Cumbria Botany.  My Telling bluebell species apart blog, may be useful, although readers should substitute “Hybrid Bluebell” for “Spanish Bluebell”.

Flowers of H. non-scripta and H. x massartiana

Other names for Bluebells

Bluebells and Bluebell woods have been a part of the landscape in Britain for hundreds, or thousands of years.  They have a vast array of alternative names including English harebell, Wild hyacinth, Cuckoo’s boots, Granfer griggles, Witches’ thimbles, Lady’s nightcap, Fairy flower, and Cra’tae (Crow’s toe).  In Welsh, it’s Clychau’r Gog which translates as “Cuckoo’s bells” and references the fact that Bluebell flower around the same time that the first cuckoos come in from over-wintering in Africa.  (It’s important to note that the true Harebell Campanula rotundiflora is in a totally different family, it’s not even a monocot!)

Ancient oak woodland with Bluebells

Folklore of Bluebells

These flowers have long been associated with fairies and folk lore.  It’s said that if you pick a Bluebell flower the fairies will lead you astray, and you will be lost forever.  If you hear a bluebell ring, a bad fairy will visit you and you’ll die soon after.

Native Bluebell H. non-scripta

On a happier note, in the language of flowers they represent humility, gratitude, and constant love.  If you can turn a Bluebell flower inside out without it tearing, you will capture the heart of your one true love.

Bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta in pencil

Finally, if you wear a wreath made of bluebells, you will be unable to lie.  Worth remembering.  (All these folklore facts come from the Woodland Trust’s website.)

Uses of Bluebell

Bluebells have been put to some unusual uses over the years.  In the Bronze age, arrow flights made of feather were glued on with Bluebell paste. Bookbinders used glue made from Bluebell stems.

Starch-rich Bluebell bulb

Elizabethan times saw enormous ruffs and collars which had to be starched.  Bluebell bulbs did the job perfectly.

Although Bluebells contain poisonous glycosides and can cause contact dermatitis, they have been used medicinally in the past.  They are diuretics, causing an increase in urination; and styptics too.  Styptics stop bleeding.

Pencil illustration of native Bluebell with specimen

The perfume industry sells perfumes claiming to be Bluebell scented, but the fragrance has proved too delicate and complex to reproduce commercially.  Bluebell perfumes are derived from their cousin, the hyacinth. (Premierpeu).

Bluebells and the law

When you walk through a woodland in April or May, it seems extraordinary that Bluebells need our protection.  But they do.

Bluebell wood with Redstart

Since the 1981 Wildlife and Countryside act, it has been illegal to dig up any bluebell bulbs in the UK.  It is also illegal to trade in H. non-scripta seeds and bulbs.  Although not against the law, it’s unnecessary and destructive to pick hand-fulls of the flowers.  Not only does this deprive insects like butterflies, bees and hoverflies from early spring sources of nectar, it also damages the leaves.  Once trampled, leaves struggle to recover and can no longer photosynthesize.  So tread with care!

Bluebells as indicators

The Bluebell is an indicator species, growing in areas which were once ancient woodland.  If you see native Bluebells growing in a field or by the side of a road, it’s proof that the area was once wooded with broadleaf species like Ash, Oak, Beech, and Birch.  They thrive in woodland over 400 years old, and are invaluable for ecologists trying to map habitats, and habitat loss.

Illustrating a Bluebell (bulb illustrated from 18th C engraving)

Kew gardens has been tracking the first opening of a Bluebell flower for 50 years, and use this data to help understand climate change.  Bluebells are opening 2 weeks earlier than they did 30 years ago.

Conclusion

Despite threats of habitat loss, climate change, and hybridization; Bluebells remain a firm fixture of the British countryside.  With over 50% of all native Bluebells growing in the UK, Bluebell woods are a visual treat to savour, and be proud of.

Bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta

The post Bluebells appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

For plant anatomy, look at the basics of botany blog, and at fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 discuss how Latin names work and why they are important

Some of the other families I’ve examined include the the Plantaginaceae (Plantains), Rosaceae (Roses), Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Fabaceae (Peas), Brassicaceae (Cabbages), Apiaceae (Carrots); and the Asteraceae (Daisy family).  The Orchids will be the last in this series for a while.

I am a botanical illustrator, not a trained botanist.  So if you see a mistake, tell mw so I can fix it.  Thanks.

Fragrant orchid Gymnadenia conopsea

Wildflower families:Orchidaceae

The Orchid family is the most profuse on earth with 760 genus and more than 28,000 species globally.  They are members of the Monocots, along with grasses, sedges, rushes and lilies.  As well as having simple leaves with parallel veins, often in a basal rosette; many also have swollen root tubers called pseudobulbs.  There is much variety in the irregular flowers, but all have a mechanism for giving sacs of pollen to a visiting insect.  These are known as pollinia.  Seeds are tiny, held in a capsule.

Early Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea

Orchids are considered exotic so are popular house plants.  Many homes have a couple of Moth orchids, Phalaenopsis, on a window sill.  Dendrobium, Cattleya, Oncidium, and Miltonia are other hot house varieties.

The flavouring Vanilla comes from the pod and seeds of Canilla planifolia which is grown commercially.  Likewis, the starch-rich tubers of some Dactylorhiza and Orchis species are ground up and used for cooking and medicine.

Early Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea with swollen pseudobulbs

Orchidacea overview

Plants in this family have simple linear alternate leaves, with some reduced to scales.  The veins are parallel.

Orchid flowers are bisexual and irregular and amazingly diverse.  They can be solitary or in a raceme.  Generally, they consist of two whorls of 3, and often twist as they develop.  Pollen is held in adapted Pollinia which are produced by one, occasionally two or three stamen.  Ovaries are inferior.

Cretan orchid Cephalanthera cucullata

The name Orchidaceae comes from the Greek word “Orchis” meaning testicle.  This refers to the bulbous shape of the swollen root or pseudobulb that you see in many species.

Early purple orchid Orchis mascula

Orchidaceae Leaves

Orchid leaves are pretty similar; all are simple with parallel veins, tend to be fleshy and don’t have stipules or a petiole.  The leaves en-sheathe the stem.  Leafless orchids reduce their leaves to scales and take an even more intimate relationship with mycorrhizal fungi which provide them with a lot more nutrients than in regular fungi-orchid symbiosis. In leafless orchids, roots are photosynthetic organs.  (Many thanks to Max Rykaczewski for this clarification!)  Some species have markings on the leaf, like the Spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii.

Common spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii

Orchidaceae Flowers

The two whorls that make up the orchid are an outer ring of Petaloids, and an inner ring of petals. Petaloids are a cross between sepals and petals. Outer and inner whorls often have the same colouring.  One of the inner petaloids has a projection, like a spur.

Orchid diagram

Orchids also have a large lip.  This grows at the top of the Orchid flower, but twists 180 degrees as it grows so that by the time the plant needs pollinating the enlarged labellum can act like a landing strip for pollinating insects.  In some single-flowered Orchids, the flower stem bends back on itself and over the stem to achieve the same result. This process is called Resupination.

Orchid flower of Early marsh orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea

Pollinia can be highly evolved to dovetail with one specific pollinator.  Sometimes the plant glues these sacs of pollen to an insect head, at other times to a bird’s beak.  Smooth surfaces like eyes and mouthparts make good adhesion sites.  The only birds that pollinate orchids are Hummingbirds, and although they pollinate a mere 3% of Orchid species, it makes for around 1000 species using bird pollination.

Diagram of a Pollinia and within an orchid flower

The plant produces a viscous glue, and once the pollinarium is attached, this dries out and rotates the structure into the ideal position for pollinating the next stigma visited.  There is a pair of Pollinium per flower.  For more on Pollinia attachment check out this brief overview from iNaturalist.

Orchid bee Euglossa cybelia with Cycnoches guttulatum orchid and pollinia attached to the abdomen

The ovary is inferior and has 3 fused carpels.  Monocots often present floral parts in multiples of 3, eudictos in multiples of four or five.

Orchidaceae Fruit

Orchid seeds are produced in capsules which get shaken by the wind.  Seeds are tiny, like dust, and are perfectly suited for wind dispersal.

Common lizard Lacerta vivipara in field with grasses buttercup and orchids

In the wild, seeds rely on symbiotic fungi to germinate as the embryo is tiny and there’s almost no endosperm for nutrient storage.  Humans sometimes germinate them in sterile environments, in nutrient rich agar! (For more on germinating orchid seeds look at this Orchidbliss blog.)

Jersey orchid Anacamptis laxiflora

Orchidaceae: Other species

In the UK we have 15 common orchids, as listed in this BBC Countryfile article.  Sometimes several species grow in abundance oat one site, like at Hartslock Nature Reserve where over 7 species grow on one slope.

Many tropical orchids are epiphytic, growing on trees, and acting like clambering vines.

Pyramidal orchid Anacamptis pyramidalis

Conclusion

I’ve never spent an enormous amount of time with the Orchids.  When I see them growing in a field I am always delighted, but they don’t seem to fill the pages of my sketchbook.  Perhaps it’s time for that to change.  References for this blog and all the others in this series include my FSC botany course delivered by Iain Powell, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Bee orchid Ophrys apifera

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Third page of the FSC guide to Socttish Urban plants

Why a guide to urban plants?

Plants are incredibly resilient, and many species have managed to carve out a niche despite all the tarmac and concrete in our towns and cities.  We often overlook these plants, or disregard them as “weeds”.  But there is an enormous amount of variety in the plants of urban spaces, and they’re well worth examining closer.

As the guide points out, “Although urban plants are easy to dismiss as ‘weeds’, they have many fascinating adaptations that are worthy of a second look. Some have a fast lifecycle, tolerating limited space, not much soil, and highly fluctuating temperatures and moisture. Others spread quickly through stolons and rhizomes to form large stands. Old walls have specialist plants all of their own, especially where there is soft lime mortar.” (FSC publications 2025)

Wall rue Asplenium ruta-muraria

What makes a plant an Urban species?

As the write up on FSC’s site states, “Since 2015 the Botanical Society of Scotland has been recording urban plants in Scotland, defined as settlements with at least 1000 inhabitants. Volunteer recorders have searched streets, car parks, golf courses, cemeteries, waste ground and many other places. Anything deliberately planted was excluded, but anything that had spread by itself was included.

Currently there are nearly 80,000 records, with over 1200 vascular plant species found so far. This guide covers the most common non-woody species among these records.” (FSC publications 2025)

FSC broke the urban plants featured into categories depending on their habitat and provenance.

Chinese bramble Rubus tricolor

Urban plants: Walls and Buildings

Every one of the species in this section grows on the churchyard wall opposite my house.  This makes life very much easier as I can get fresh material to work with both when drawing up roughs, and when adding colour.  It also shows something of the geographical spread of these plants.

Common polypody Polypodium vulgare

There are several similar species of Polypody fern in the UK, and I struggled to be certain which one I was drawing.  The BSBI produce “crib sheets”, pdfs comparing and contrasting similar species.  The one on Polypody ferns proved very useful.  There’s also a good video from the Botanical Society of the British Isles on these ferns if you’d like to learn more.

Wall lettuce Lactuca muralis grows at the base of the churchyard wall, and was just coming into flower.  I recognized it immediately, but had never stopped to i.d. it before.  One of the many things my job gives me is a reason to stop and look at plants differently and closer than before.

Wall lettuce Lactuca muralis

Growing on the wall in my garden is the Wall bellflower Campanula portenschlagiana.  In late May, the whole of the front garden wall is blue with it.  I was surprised to find there are two similar bell flower species.  Again, time was needed to untangle them and ensure I was illustrating the correct species.  Online resources such as the Botany in Scotland blog proved very helpful.

Wall or Dalmatian bellflower Campanula portenschlagiana

Urban plants of Scotland i.d. guide : Walls & buildings, and Garden escapes

Urban plants: Garden escapes

Many of the plants seen in urban settings are garden escapes.  This isn’t surprising.  However, it does mean lots of urban plants are quite blousy.  One example is the Opium poppy Papaver somniferum.

This is a plant I’ve been wanting to paint for a long time, but never had the opportunity.  I was surprised to find the commonest colour of the bloom is mauve, not a deep red.  Like many plants, the Opium poppy has glaucous, waxy leaves.  This means using lots of Cobalt Blue and even some white when it comes to colour mixing.

Opium poppy Papaver somniferum

Another garden escape is the Hybrid bluebell Hyacinthoides x massartiana.  This is a cross between the UK’s native bluebell, and the Spanish bluebell which is often grown in gardens from bulb.  Telling your Spanish bluebell from your native species, and figuring out whether or not you’re looking at a hybrid is mighty confusing.  I did a blog a few years back, trying to untangle them.

Hybrid bluebell Hyacinthoides x massartiana

It was interesting to see that the Welsh poppy Meconopsis cambrica appears in this section.  Where I live, on the border between England and Wales, the Welsh poppy is a wild flower, not a garden escape.

Welsh poppy Meconopsis cambrica

Urban plants: Pavements

The species in this habitat were also a bit tough to untangle as superficially Thale cress, Hairy bitter-cress, and Shepherd’s purse look alike.  It doesn’t take long with a botany bible like Stace’s New Flora of the British Isles and the gorgeous line drawings of Stella Ross-craig to be able to tell them apart with no trouble. Two of them grow, by chance, in pots in my garden.  Thale cress I had to look for a little harder.  It’s an important plant as it’s used as a model in genetics research.  The genome of Thale cress was the first plant genome to be sequenced.  A small weed with a big impact.

Thale cress Arabidopsis thaliana Hairy bittercress Cardamine hirsuta and Sherherds purse Capsella bursa-pastoris

Annual meadow grass was one of only 4 grass species on the whole list.  I can’t believe I’ve not illustrated it before, it’s very common and very pretty!  I started on these illustrations in the depth of winter, and as Annual meadow grass is the only UK grass species to flower year round, it made identification super-easy.  The crinkled leaf blade is another useful diagnostic.

Annual meadow grass Poa annua

Urban plants of Scotland i.d. guide : Pavements

Some of the pavement species are ones I’ve illustrated before.  This includes the Pineapple weed Matricaria discoidea, Broad-leaf Willow-herb Epilobium montanum, and Chickweed Stellaria media.  I know I always go on about it, but an illustrator gets paid for each illustration used, whether or not it already exists.  Hang onto your copyright, illustrators!  Re-use fees make the notoriously low-paid job of an illustrator (almost) a viable career.

Pineapple mayweed Matricaria discoidea

Urban plants: Grassy places & parkland

Some of the prettiest species featured in the guide grow in this ecological niche.  I’d completed all but one of the plants featured in this section for other jobs; it was a pleasure to re-assess them and make sure they still pass muster. One of my favourite wildflowers, Fox and Cubs Pilosella aurantiaca, makes an appearance.  After years of cajoling, I finally have a flourishing population of these flowers in my garden.

Orange hawkbit Fox and Cubs Pilosella aurantiaca

Likewise, with some careful neglect, I now have a healthy amount of Self heal Prunella vulgaris and White clover Trifolium repens growing in my lawn.  It makes me happy, helps protect the grass from drought, and is good for the pollinators.

Self heal Prunella vulgaris

The species in this section that I’d not yet painted is the common Daisy, Bellis perennis.  It’s odd, with the species I get asked to illustrate, sometimes the most ubiquitous plants fall through the cracks.  I’ve been illustrating plants for 25 years, and this is the first time I’ve been asked to illustrate a daisy.  It was a real joy to find the perfect specimen on the lawn and rectify the situation. The illustration takes the basal rosette of one plant and the flowering heads of another.  The benefits of illustrations instead of photography (for more about my feelings on this, check out my FAQ section, but be prepared for a balanced view.  Both are vital tools.).

Daisy Bellis perennis

Urban plants of Grassland and parks: In defence of Ragwort

I wish I’d been able to add the caterpillar of the Cinnibar moth Tyria javobaeae when I illustrated Common ragwort Jacobeae vulgaris.

Ragwort Jacobeae vulgaris or Senecio jacobaea

They’re black and yellow striped, and are really common on the plant.  I know there is a lot of anger towards Ragwort, as the plants can be toxic to livestock.  Sadly, this has been massively over-emphasized, and the mass clearance of this plant has had dreadful effects on the beautiful black and red Cinnibar moth.

Cinnibar moth Tyria jacobaeae

As the Botanic Gardens of Wales say, “Butterfly Conservation’s 2006 report on the state of Britain’s larger moths showed that the cinnabar had declined by 83%, classing it as ‘Vulnerable’.  While this dramatic change is likely due to many reasons, there is little doubt that misconception surrounding the toxicity of ragwort to livestock is a contributing factor to its decline. Farmers and landowners have been encouraged to eradicate the plant to minimise the risks of poisoning. However, ragwort poses little threat to livestock or humans unless considerable amounts are consumed daily, and the only real risk is posed when dried in hay, where it loses its acrid taste. As cinnabar caterpillars feed exclusively on ragwort and groundsel their slow eradication from our countryside poses a major threat to the survival of this species.”

Urban plants of Scotland i.d. guide : Grassy places and parklands pages

Conclusion

What surprised me as I worked on this guide, was just how many of the Urban plants noted in Scotland were equally common here in mid Wales, and down in London.  It’s a testament to the incredible adaptability of some of our plants.  They are filling niches that didn’t exist 150 years ago, and thriving.  Many more species can not make the transition, however, and become rarer and rarer as the urban sprawl continues to eat into the countryside.  Even more reason to care for the wild flower species we do still have, and to celebrate those that we get to see in our cities as well as in the countryside.  And to stop labelling them all as weeds, and trying to eradicate them from our pavements, walls, brownfield sites, and parkland.

Purple toadflax Linaria purpurea

The post Guide to Urban Plants of Scotland illustrations appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

For descriptions of plant anatomy, look at my  the basics of botany blog, and on fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 discuss how Latin names work and why they matter.  I have blogged on this family before, as it intrigues me, so feel free to look at my earlier blog.

Some of the other families I’ve examined include the Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Rosaceae (Roses), Fabaceae (Peas), Brassicaceae (Cabbages), and Apiaceae   I hope to add a few more over the coming months.

Meadow thistle Cirsium dissectum

I am a botanical illustrator, but not a trained botanist.  So if you see a mistake, please let me know, thanks.

Wildflower families: Asteraceae

The daisy family has 1317 genus and over 21,000 species.  This makes it one of the most prolific plant families on earth. Flowers are small and either disc or ray form.  They cluster together in flowering heads called a capitulum, and have a distinctive appearance.  Dandelions, daisies, and thistles are Asteraceae.  Seeds are cypsela, a type of achene. As well as daisies, dandelions, and thistles, other Asteraceae include many garden flowers.  Chrysanthemum, Dahlia, Rudbeckia, Cosmos, Goldenrod and Gerbera are all in this family.

Chrysanthemum flower (Pom-pom variety)

Food crops are limited to Lettuce, Chicory, Salsify, Endive, and Globe artichoke.  The oil from Sunflower seeds is economically important, and the tubers of the Jerusalem artichoke are edible. There are lots of wildflowers in the Asteraceae, some (like Dandelion and its’ allies) can be incredibly difficult to identify to species level.  Knapweeds, Teasels, Chamomile, and Marigolds are Asteraceae.

African daisy Gerbera

Asteraceae overview

Plants in this family have varied leaves which are mostly alternate.  They don’t have stipules and frequently grow in basal rosettes, as well as on the stem.  A stipule is like a tiny leaf that grows in pairs at the base of a leaf stalk, next to the stem. Flowers have five fused petals, and  their stamens fuse to this tube. Flowers (florets) are disc or ray form.  The calyx is modified to a pappas. Seeds are a dry cypsela, achenes with one seed.

Milk thistle Silybum marianum with detail of disc floret and seed with calyx modified to a pappas

The name Asteraceae comes from the ancient Greek for star, via the Latin Aster.  It refers to the star-like flowering head.  This family used to be known as the Compositae, reflecting the composite nature of the flowering heads.

Asteraceae Leaves

The amount of variety in Asteraceae leaves is enormous, and they can not be reliably used to identify the family.  They can be simple or pinnate (divided).  Although most are alternate they can be whorled or opposite.

Creeping Thistle Cirsium arvense with alternate divided stem leaves and a basal rosette

However, most Asteraceae have a basal rosette, and most leaves are towards the bottom of the stem.  These are often larger and much more divided than higher stem leaves.  Look for a difference between base and stem leaves, this suggests a plant might be in the Daisy family.  A good example is the Sow-thistle.

Common blue Sow-thistle Cicerbita macrophylla

However, wildflowers from other species (like the Harebell Campanula rotunidfolia from the Campanulaceae) also have different basal and upper leaves.

Harebell Campanula rotundifolia showing different stem and basal leaves.  Harebell is NOT an Asteraceae

Asteraceae Flowers: Ray and Disc florets

All flowers are made of an assemblage of smaller florets, held in a capitulum.  They come in two forms, disc and ray florets. Disc florets are tubular, made of five petals fused into a tube, and have radial symmetry.  Ray florets are irregular, with one elongate petal (called a ligule) which tapers to a fused base around the flower parts.  Each yellow bit of a dandelion flower is a separate ray floret.  The florets attach to a receptacle, and the whole is the capitulum.

Echinacea diagram

Some species are a mix of ray and disc florets, like the Scabious, Cornflower, and the Daisy.  Ray florets on the outside, disc florets within.  The easiest plant to see this on is the enormous capitulum of the Sunflower, Helianthus annus,

Sunflower Helianthus annuus, Yellow ray florets on the outside, brown disc florets inside

Others are only disc florets.  Knapweed and Thistles fall into this category as does the Button-weed, Cotula.

Greater knapweed Centaurea scabiosa with disc floret and bract

Asteraceae which only have ray florets include all the Dandelions (Taraxacum agg), Hawkweeds (Hieracia), and Hawk’s-beard (Crepis).

Mouse-ear Hawkweed Pilosella officinarum

Asteraceae Flowers: Pappas and Involucral bracts

The sepals and calyx are reduced to a ring of hair-like pappus which become far more prominent when the seeds mature.

Carline Thistle Carlina vulgaris with seed, pappas around disc floret, and involucral bract detail

Often the capitulum is flanked with whorls of sepal-like leaves.  These are known as involucral bracts, or phyllaries. The number of whorls can help differentiate between species, as can their colour, and whether or not they have gland-bearing hairs.  This becomes really important when trying to identify the Dandelion-like species, known as Taxacarum agg, showing that there’s a whole aggregation of similar species.  A really helpful resource is the BSBI guide to Dandelions by A. J. Richards, but even experts accept that sorting these out to species level is difficult.

Mouse-ear Hawkweed Pilosella officinarum showing overlapping hairy involucral bracts

Capitulum may grow solitarily (like the Daisy) or in many-flowered clusters (like the Goldenrod Solidagao species)

Giant or Early Goldenrod Solidago gigantea

Each flower is bisexual and has five stamens with short filaments, fused to and alternating with the lobes of the corolla. Anthers are fused to filaments, and face inwards, forming a tube around the style.

Narrow-leaved Ragwort Senecio inequidens details

There are two carpels (the female reproductive organ of a flower, consisting of a style, an ovary, and a stigma.  Ovaries are inferior, growing below the flowering parts. For more on ovary positions look at my blog on the ovary.  The stigma, the top of the style and part that pollen lands on, is always forked and frequently curves back on itself.  The style grows within the tube made by the anthers, with the curved stigma emerging at the top.

Sunflower Helianthus annus Ray and disc floret, the latter clearly showing emergent curved stigma

Asteraceae Fruit

The fruit of the Asteraceae are cypsela.  Cypsela are a type of achene, a single-seeded dry fruit.  Cypsela come in various shapes, and often are crowned with the pappas, hairs.  Pappas frequently lengthen after fertilization to form the familiar dandelion clocks and fluffy seeds we see being disbursed by the wind.

Giant or Early Goldenrod Solidago gigantea seed

There’s plenty of variation here, too.  Some cypsela have beaks, a stem holding the pappas (like a Dandelion).  Others simply have a ring of hairs attached to the seed.  The pappas hairs can be simple or branched.  Some species like the Pot marigold, Calendula officianlis have no pappas, but are an amazing curved and lumpy shape.

Dandelion Taxacum officinale seeds

Asteraceae: Other species

As well as the species listed, Yarrow, Tarragon, Arnica, Burdock, Groundsel, Ragwort and Ragweed, and Echinaceae are all members of the Daisy family.

Ragwort Senecio jacobaea

Conclusion

Sorting out the Asteraceae, with its ray and disc florets and cypsela, seems daunting at first.  However, it’s a magnificent family, and the tiny florets are well worth a closer look with a hand lens.  I’ll be doing more of these wildflower family blogs over the coming months.  References include my FSC botany course delivered by Iain Powell, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Marsh hawksbeard Crepis paludosa

The post Wildflower families: Asteraceae appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

For definitions of botanical terms, look at my blog on the basics of botany blog, and there’s another on fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 explain Latin names and why they matter.

Other wildflower families I’ve discussed include the Plantaginaceae (Plantains), Rosaceae (Roses), Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Fabaceae (Peas), Brassicaceae (Cabbages), and Apiaceae (Carrots); with Asteraceae (Daisies) and Orchidaceae (Orchids) yet to come.

Bee balm Monarda sketchbook study

I know a bit about wildflowers from illustrating them, but I am not a trained botanist.  So if you see a mistake, please let me know, thanks.

Wildflower families: Lamiaceae

The Dead-nettle family has 224 genera and over 5600 species globally.  Stems are square and leaves are opposite and simple, without stipules.  They are often hairy and may contain volatile oils that make the plants smell strong.  Flowers have a fused corolla with a two-lipped lower petal.  There are four stamen, and two fused carpels.  Seeds are held in nutlets.

Black horehound Ballota nigra

As well as Dead-nettle, this family contains garden flowers like Salvia, Phlomis, the houseplant Coleus, and Lavender.  The volatile oils mean many of these flowers are fragrant and used as herbs.  These include Rosemary, Oregano, Marjoram, Sage, Thyme, Mint, Hyssop, and Bergemot.  Some of these species are grown commercially in the perfume and food-crops industries.  Wildflowers in this family include Yellow archangel, Woundwort, Bugle, Selfheal and Betony.

Wild thyme Thymus praecox

(The Stinging nettle Urtica dioica is not a member of the Dead-nettle family.)

Lamiaceae overview

Plants in this family have square stems, tend to be hairy, have paired simple leaves and a turret of flowers called a Verticillaster.  This consists of a series of whorls of flowers. Many are aromatic and all produce four seeds in a fruit called a nutlet.

The name Lamiaceae replaces the older family name of Labiatae which comes from the ancient Greek word Iamos, meaning jaws, and seems refer to the way flowers seem to swallow small insects when they enter the corolla tube.

Harper Collins Flower Guide plate showing members of the Lamiaceae family

Some members of this family reproduce asexually, without seeds.  Yellow archangel sends out runners and Mint is notorious for taking over swathes of a garden.

Apple mint Mentha suaveolens, a species which sends out runners, with the Silver Y moth 

Lamaceae Leaves

Leaves grow from the square stems, which are often hairy and sometimes flushed purple.

Watermint Mentha aquatica

They are opposite and never compound, and they lack stipules.

Many have toothed margins (for more on margins check out my blog).  They have deep veins and are often hairy.  Lots have glands in the epidermis which secrete volatile oils, making the leaves aromatic.

Lamaceae Flowers

Flowers in this family grow in a turret formation called a Verticillaster.

Variegated Yellow Archangel Lamiatrum galeobdolon subsp argentum

The flowers of the Dead-nettle family are mostly bisexual and irregular.  They have bilateral symmetry.

White dead nettle Lamium album flowers

The five sepals are fused into a tubular calyx with different shaped teeth, depending on species.  It remains and cradles the fruit til the seeds are ripe.

Five petals are fused into a corolla tube; the upper petal is often hood-like and may be fringed with hairs.  The lower corolla lip is mostly two-lipped.

Klip dagga Leonotis nepetifolia flower

There are four free stamens Inserted under the corolla “hood”, two long and two short (except in Gypsywort Lycopus europaeus which has two).  The stamen filaments are attached to the corolla tube and the anthers point inwards.

Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata cross section, the 2 lower stamens concealed

There are two fused carpels and a superior ovary (meaning it develops seeds above the flowering parts.)  For more on ovary positions look at my blog on the ovary.  The carpels sit on a nectar-producing disk. The stigma is two lobed and grows between the two carpels.

Gypsywort Lycopus europaeus detail of flower (with only 2 stamens) calyx and seed

Lamaceae Fruit

As the carpels of the Lamaceae species mature, they divide in two.  This produces an individual fruit with four seeds which are dark nutlets. Each contains one seed.  Then, when ripe, this quartet of seeds are shaken out of the cup-like corolla.

Water mint Mentha aquatica nutlet and enclosing calyx

Lamaceaee: Other species

As well as the aromatic herbs and dead nettles, this family contains Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata and the Bee-balm Monardia fistulosa.  There is also Catmint Nepeta cataria, Henbit Lamium amplexicaule, and the decorative Bells-of-Ireland Molucella laevis.

Catnip Nepeta cataria

They are very good sources of nectar for pollinators including bees and flies.  Insects like Bumblebees seem to be attracted to purple and pinks, the colour of lots of Dead-nettle flowers.

Conclusion

I hope this Lamaceae wildflower family blog was useful.  I’ll be doing a couple more of these blogs over the coming months.  References include my FSC botany course, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata

The post Wildflower families: Lamiaceae appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

As a background, you may want to look for explanations of terms used on my the basics of botany blog, and fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 discuss how Latin names work and why they matter. Some of the other families I’ve examined include the Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Rosaceae (Roses), Fabaceae (Peas), Brassicaceae (Cabbages), with Asteraceae (Daisies), Orchidaceae (Orchids) and Lamiaceae (Dead-nettles) yet to come over the coming months.

Fool’s water-cress Apium nodiflorum

I am not a trained botanist, but a botanical illustrator and keen amateur.  So if you see a mistake, please let me know, thanks.

Wildflower families: Apiaceae

The Carrot family has 420 genera and over 3,100 species.  The flowers are held in distinctive inflorescences called umbels, are small, and have curved petals.  Leaves are deeply divided and sheath the stem (which is often hollow).  Fruit are a 2 celled schizocarp.  As well as Cow parsley, Apiaceae contain lots of herbs like parsley, chervil, dill, fennel, cumin and coriander.  Celery is also a member of the Carrot family.  Decorative garden plants include showy Eryngium.

Hemlock Conium maculatum

Economically, carrots and parsnips are vital crops, with the tap root being the edible part.  There are loads of wildflowers in this family, in the UK hedgerows are frothy and white with Cow parsley in early summer.  I dedicated a blog and a step by step youtube film to cow parsley, such a beautiful wildflowere.  Pignut grows in woodland, sanicle and wild angelica are common, and giant hogweed (an invasive – for more on this take a look at my blog) is easy to spot.

Poisonous plants like Hemlock and Water dropwort are members this family, and the sap of some other species (like the hogweeds) can cause skin irritations, especially when exposed to sunlight.

The poisonous Hemlock Water dropwort Oenanthe crocata

Apiaceae overview

Plants in this family have alternate leaves with wide bases that enclose the stem.  Leaves are mostly divided, often sub-divided several times (these divisions are known as being Pinnate).  This makes them look feathery and fern-like. The Marsh pennywort and Sea holly, however, have non-divided leaves.

Sea holly Eryngium maritimum

Flowers have five petals.  They are borne in compound inflorescences known as umbels, which look a bit like umbrellas, and the umbels may be further branched.  The schizocarp is a 2-celled dry fruit, vital for identifying an Apiaceae to species level.

Cow parsley Anthriscus sylvestris fruit

The name Apiaceae is based on the term Apium, coined by Pliny the Elder around 50AD, referring to celery-like plants.  This family used to be called the Umbelliferae, referencing the inflorescence shape.

Cow parsley Anthriscus sylvestris sketchbook study sheet

This family can be very tricky to key out to species as many look superficially similar.  Characteristics of the schizocarp including wings, markings, and even scent are frequently needed. The BSBI guide by Tutin is an invaluable aid.

Apiaceae Leaves

Apiaceae leaves are mostly divided and sub-divided.  This makes them quite tricky to illustrate.  Sometimes the leaves are so divided that they are almost linear, like dill.  In other species the pinnate sections are heftier, as with the lower leaves of the Hogweeds.  In many species, leaves at the base and higher up the plant are different shapes.

Persian Hogweed Heracelum persicum and Giant Hogweed Heracelum mantegazzianum comparison of lower leaf shape

Carrot family species don’t have stipules (leafy paired processes at the base of a leaf, present in other families like the Roseaceae).

Sketchbook notes on Cow parsley Anthriscus sylvestris leaves

The base of the petiole encases the stem, and is often inflated.  It can be flushed red, and some species have spotted leaf bases and stems (Hogweeds).  Stems are frequently ridged.

Leaves can be hairy or smooth, and often look pretty similar across species.

Apiaceae Flowers

Firstly, flowers of the Carrot family can be tiny, and are borne on the end of branches which grow from a central stem into umbrella-like umbels.  It’s worth seeing how many sub divisions of umbel branch you can spot as this can help identify a species.  The shape of the umbel is important, it can be highly domed or almost completely flat.

Persian Hogweed Heracelum persicum and Giant Hogweed Heracelum mantegazzianum comparison umbels

Secondly, the flowers have five free petals, which are mostly white.  They often curve backward, making each flower a little convex in shape.  Parsnip flowers, Dill, and some other Apiaceae are yellow, and you will often see one or two deep purple flower in the middle of an umbel (as with the Sea carrot Daucus carota gummifer).

Sea carrot Daucus carota gummifer showing distinctive one or two purple flowers in the centre of an umbel

Thirdly, most of the flowers in an umbel are regular, with radial symmetry.  Those on the outside edges are often irregular, with the outermost petals elongate and lobed.

Cow parsley Anthriscus sylvestris showing flowering head from above and inner flowers (on left) and outer ones (on right)

Fourthly, there are five sepals which do not fuse, and flowers have five unfused stamens.  These may unfurl at different times, and the anthers point inwards.

Persian Hogweed Heracelum persicum outer flower

Finally, they have inferior ovaries and two fused carpels.

Apiaceae Fruit

The schizocarp is a two celled dry fruit which splits at maturity into two mericarps and releases tiny seeds.

The schizocarp may have wings, be ridged, or have hooks.  Some have structures which make them easy to identify, like the Shepherd’s needle, with its’ long beaks on top of each fruit.

Sheperd’s needle Scandix pecten-veneris showing beaks on fruit

Each mericarp has five ridges, the outermost of which are the seams along which the mericarp splits.  There are often oil-canals called vittae between the ridges.

Persian Hogweed seeds showing vittae Heracleum persicum

The shape and position of all these features is quite variable, and vital in telling similar species apart.

Apiaceae: Roots

Carrots and parsnip are the roots of Apiaceae plants.  In the past, Pignut root was also foraged and eaten.  It’s these species with a swollen main tap root that have proved useful as food crops.

Wild Parsnip Pastinaca sativa

Conclusion

In conclusion, I hope my Apiaceae wildflower blog was helpful.  I’ll be doing more of these blogs over the coming months.  My references included my FSC botany course, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Giant Hogweed Heracleum mantegazzianum

The post Wildflower families: Apiaceae appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

For definitions of botanical terminology, look at my  basics of botany blog, and a second one on fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 discuss Latin names and why they matter.  Some of the other families I’ve examined include the Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Rosaceae (Roses), Fabaceae (Peas), Brassicaceae (Cabbages), with Apicaceae (Carrots), Asteraceae (Daisies), Orchidaceae (Orchids) and Lamiaceae (Dead-nettles)yet to come over the coming months.

Spiked speedwell Veronica spicata

Although I know a bit about wildflowers, I am not a trained botanist.  So if you see a mistake, please let me know, thanks.

Wildflower families: Plantaginaceae

The Plantain family has 90 genera and nearly 2000 species globally.  There’s a massive amount of variety between genera and between species.  Some flowers have 2 petals, others have four.  The Speedwells (Veronica species) are in this family, as are plantains and some of the plants which used to be classed as Figworts, Scrophulareae.

Speedwell

A note on DNA comparison and re-classification of plants

DNA analysis has shown that some flowers which were once placed in the Figwort family have very little to do with others, so they’ve been removed.  Turns out Speedwells and Plantains are close relatives, so the Speedwells join the Plantaginaceae family.  Other families have been added to the Plantain family.  These include Snapdragon Antirrhium, Foxgloves Digitalis, Ivy-leaved toadflax Cymbalaria muralis, and Hebes.

Foxglove flower Digitaria purpurea

Figwort family members that are now in the Plantain family include the Mulleins and Figworts.  Buddlejas (which were in yet another family previously) are also now in the Plantain family.

Butterfly bush Buddleja davidii

Expulsion from the Broomrapes

Meanwhile, some species have been chucked out of the Figworts.  All the Broomrapes Orobanchaceae and Yellow-rattle, have been put in their own family (the Broomrapes).  They are joined by the Louseworts, Spurges, Cow-wheat, and Bartsia.  Keeping up?

Lousewort Pedicularis sylvatica – no longer in the Scrophularaceae (nor Plantaginaceae!), but now in Orobanchaceae.

Plantaginaceae overview

So the plants in this family are really varied.  We can break them into two groups, however, the Plantains and the Veronicaceae (Speedwells). The name Plantaginacea comes from the Latin Planta, meaning young plant or sole of the foot.  However, this only refers to the plantain family.  It’s worth noting that the plantains related to bananas ae nothing to do with this family.

Leaves are often alternate on the stem and whorled or opposite lower down and have no stipules.  Flowers are irregular with four or five fused petals and sepals.  The Speedwell have two stamens, all the other family members have four and flowers can be single or several in a raceme.

Wood speedwell Veronica montana

Plantaginaceae Leaves

Leaves are mostly simple rather than compound and have no stipules.  (For more on simple and compound leaves, check out my blog).

They can be opposite or alternate, and those lower down the plant are frequently in a whorl.  There’s a massive range of variety here, both in leaf arrangement and shape.

Bucks horn plantain Plantago maritima

For more on Plantains, check out the Flora of East Anglia guide.

Foxglove Digitalis leaves are oval and large, and in opposite pairs,  They have little margin teeth. (For more on leaf margins, look at my blog).  Hebe has evergreen leaves with smooth edges, borne in pairs up the stem.  Leaves are small, elliptical and may be variegated.  Speedwell have downy or hairy leaves that range in shape from the toothed paired oval leaves of Germander speedwell Veronica chamaedrys to the softly lobed rounder leaves of Ivy-leaved speedwell Veronica hederifolia.  Snapdragons Antirrhinum have compound leaves, which is unusual for this family. For more on simple and compound leaves, check out my blog).

Germander speedwell Veronica chamaedrys

Plantaginaceae Flowers

Plantain family flowers are bisexual and irregular, having bilateral rather than radial symmetry.  They grow in racemes or as solitary blooms from the leaf axils (as with the Linaria, like Yellow toadflax.)

There are bracts or bracteoles.  The five sepals are fused into a calyx tube.

The Corolla has five united petals (four in the Speedwells) which are often two-lipped.  Examples of this include the Snapdragons and Foxlove Digitalis purpurea.  There’s a lot of variety here.

Toadflax have long spurs at the back of the corolla tube.  Speedwell flowers are flat and forward facing.

Speedwell flower with 4 stamens and Plantain flower with 2 stamens

Stamens are four (but number two in Speedwells.)

The ovary is superior with a nectar producing disc below.

Plantaginaceae Fruit

There are two fused carpels which produce a fruit that is often surrounded by the calyx.  Seeds are numerous and tiny.

Plantaginaceae: Other species

As well as the flowers mentioned, other plants in this variable family include the Ivy-leaved toadflax Cymbalaria muralis, Dwarf snapdragons Chaenorrhium,  Cancerworts or Fuellins Kickxia, the Toadflaxes Linaria, and Weasel snouts Misopates.

Ivy leaved toadflax Cymbalaria muralis

Conclusion

I hope this rather confusing Plantaginaceae wildflower family blog was useful.  I;m still trying to get my head around the new family organisation and bet it shows in this blog!  I’ll be doing one more of these blogs over the coming months.  My references included my FSC botany course, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Sea plantain Plantago maritima

The post Wildflower families: Plantaginaceae appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

For terminology, look at my  the basics of botany blog, and on fruit types.  What’s in a name 1 and part 2 discuss how Latin names work and why they matter.  Some of the other families I’ve examined include the Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), Rosaceae (Roses), and Brassicaceae (Cabbages). I hope to add more over the coming months.

Wood vetch Vicia sylvatica

I know a bit about wildflowers, but I am not a trained botanist.  So if you see a mistake, please let me know, thanks.

Wildflower families: Fabaceae

The Pea family has 640+ genus and a whopping 18,000 species and is the second largest family of flowering plants.  They grow across most of the globe and include many crop plants.

Leaves have stipules, and tend to be made of three leaflets (trifoliate) or many paired leaflets.  They also have tendrils.  Fabaceae play a vital role by fixing free nitrogen in their roots, which helps soil health.  Fruits in the Fabaceae are variable, although most grow in pods which split down both sides at maturity.

As well as Sweet peas and Broom, other Fabaceae garden flowers include Lupins, Wisteria, and Laburnum.  (For a step by step blog on painting a sketchbook study of a Lupin, click here).Crop plants in the pea family include lentils, peas, beans, alfalfa, tamarind and the nitrogen fixing clover.  There are many wild flowers are in this family, including vetches, gorse, and the excellent Bird’s foot trefoil.

Bird’s-foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus 

Fabaceae overview

Plants in this family have trifoliate alternate leaves with stipules at their base, twining tendrils, and nitrogen fixing roots.  The stipules are often large.  The flowers have five petals of different shapes, and only one line of symmetry, and the fruit grow in pods. The name Fabaceae comes from the Latin for bean, Faba.

Broom Cystisus scoparius lena sketchbook study

Fabaceae Leaves

Fabaceae leaves are compound, many consisting of three leaflets.  A good example is the Red clover.  (For more on compound vs simple leaves, look at my blog).  Lots of Fabaceae have pinnate leaves, (a leaf made of multiple pairs of leaflets).  Vetches have pinnate leaves.  Leaf margins tend to be smooth.

Red clover Trifolium pratense. A step by step blog on illustrating clover can be found here

There is a lot of variety in Fabaceae leaves.  Gorse has reduced its’ leaves to furrowed spines, and leaflets can be elongate, lanceolate, or almost round.  (I did a blog on leaf shape, if  it appeals.)

Bush tea Gliricidia sepium

Stipules grow in pairs at the base of a leaf, and vary in size.  The garden pea has obvious rounded stipules, whilst those of the vetches are far smaller.  In some cases, like the Acacia, these stipules have evolved into spines.

Bitter vetch Lathyrus linifolius showing paired stipules

Garden pea Pisum sativa stipule

Lots of plants in the Pea family have thread-like tendrils which help the plant climb and grow by twining around supports or other plants.  These may be single or split into several smaller branches.  These splits can be useful in telling differences between species.  Tendrils can grow from leaves, or from the stem of a plant.

Tufted or Bird vetch Vicia cracca tendrils

Fabaceae Roots

Roots of Fabaceae often have nodules, or tubercules.  These can be seen with the naked eye.

Clover root nodules

Tubercules are part of the root, and house communities of Rhizobia, symbiotic bacteria.  The bacteria can fix free atmospheric nitrogen into ammonium, which the plant uses.  When a Fabaceae dies, all the ammonium rots down to nourish the soil, along with other plants growing there.

Nootka lupin Lupinus nootkatensis roots

This explains why cover crops are used in agriculture, and how many green manure crops work.

White clover Trifolium repens with roots and nodules

Fabaceae Flowers

Pea family flowers are usually bisexual and made of five petals which grow in a distinctive shape.  The standard is the top petal, standing erect.  Below this are a pair of lateral petals, the wings.  The lowest petals are fused and act like a landing pad for visiting pollinators and is called the keel.

Common pea Pisum sativum flower showing typical Fabaceae flower structure

Flowers are often borne in densely packed clusters, known as racemes.

Crimson clover Trifolium incarnatum flowering head

You can see this in the clovers and plants such as the Kidney Vetch Anthyllis vulneraria.

Kidney Vetch Anthyllis vulneraria

However, they can also be borne singly, or in pairs.  The Broad-leaved everlasting-pea Lathyrus latifolius is an example with a few-flowered raceme.  For a step by step guide on illustrating this plant, look at my blog.

Broad-leaved everlasting-pea Lathyrus latifolius

The sepals are fused into one calyx tube and there are either 10 fused stamens, or 9 which are fused and one which is free.  These are mostly tucked away inside the corolla tube, so you may need to dissect the flower to see them.

Blue bonnet Lupin Lupinus polyphyllus cross section

There is one or occasionally two carpels (the female reproductive organ of a flower, consisting of a style, an ovary, and a stigma) which is superior, growing above the flowering structure.  For more on ovary positions look at my blog on the ovary.

Fabaceae Fruit

Pea family mostly bear their fruit in pods. The pod itself is known as a legume, and splits down both sides (sutures) at maturity.  There are many different shapes of legume pod.  Some have wings, or are flattened like the Judas tree Cercis siliquastrum.

Judas tree Cercis siliquastrum pod

Some have constrictions between the seeds, like the Bird’s-foot species.

Little White Bird’s-foot Ornithopus perpusillus

Other split open at maturity, using this mechanical force to spread the seeds.  You can hear this as distinctive “pops” on a hot day in late summer, among gorse plants.

The pods may be clustered together, as with lupins, or single, like the garden pea and broad bean.  Pods can be smooth or furry.

Blue bonnet Lupin Lupinus polyphyllus seed pods

They may remain green until mature or turn brown or black.  Our garden peas are harvested before the peas are fully ripe, but even if left to grow the pea pod remains greenish.

Garden Pea Pisum sativum pod

Some species have clusters of small pods, each containing one or two seeds.  Black medick has lots of little pods held together which go shiny black at maturity.

Black medick Medicago lupulina pod

One of the most surprising is the spirally coiled seed pod of the Alfalfa (or Lucerne) Medicago sativa.  These pods contain 10 to 20 seeds.

Alfalfa (or Lucerne) Medicago sativa pod

Fabaceaee: Other species

This blog has already covered loads of the Fabaceae species; both those that are economically important, and those that we use in our gardens.

Sweet pea (for a step by step blog on illustrating this click here)

From beans to alfalfa, laburnum to wisteria, peas to vetches, gorse to chickpeas, fenugreek to restharrow….  Fabaceae are a widely varied family, but thanks to the splitting pods and distinctive flower shape, they are comparatively easy to recognize.

Restharrow Ononis repens

Conclusion

I hope this Fabaceae wildflower family blog was useful.  Click here to access my blogs on other common wildflower families.  I’ll be doing even more of these blogs over the coming months.  My references included my FSC botany course, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and the excellent Naturespot website.

Gorse Ulex europaeus

The post Wildflower families: Fabaceae, the Pea family appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

Whilst recently researching the wildflower families, I fell down a fruit-shaped rabbit hole.  And it is because of the amount of variety shown in the fruit of the Rosaceae, or rose family.

Japanese rose Rosa rugosa

For more on what makes a plant a member of the Rosaceae, check out my recent blog Wildflower families: Rosaceae.

Where to start?  There’s a lot of variety, and taking a look at my Fruit variety and terminology blog might help.

Rosaceae Fruit: Aggregate Fruit

Rosaceae fruit are one to two seeded, and often form together into aggregates, or aggregate fruit.  Think of a blackberry or a raspberry.  Each of those little lumps (or drupelets) houses a seed.  They clump together to form what we see as one fruit, although it is an aggregate of many.  Think how many seeds you find when eating one blackberry!

Jersey Post copyright 2027 Jersey bramble Rubus caesarius

If you have time to spare, have a look at my step by step blog on painting a blackberry.

Rosaceae Fruits: Drupes

Some other Rosaceae grow drupes.  A drupe is a fleshy fruit which has a thin skin and grows around a central hard stone.  Inside the stone (or pip, or kernel) is the seed.

Plum Prunus prunus fruit

Plums and cherries are drupes.  In the states, the term “stone fruit” is used.  This refers to any soft fruit with a woody stone, such as apricots and peaches.

Peach Prunus persica with stone (and seed) removed

Rosaceae fruits: Aggregates of Achenes

Some have aggregates of single-seeded achenes.  Some of these have spines which catch onto fur for seed dispersal.  These are actually called awns, and are formed from the persistent remains of the style.

Piri Piri bur Acaena novae-zelandiae seedhead and individual achene with awns

Other examples include Herb bennet, Geum, and Mountain avens.

Water avens Geum rivale showing flower and seed head with awned achenes

Others, like Meadowsweet, twist their achenes together into a spiral.

Potentilla seed heads look a lot like those of the Ranunculaceae family, an assembly of achenes borne in a globe-like arrangement.

Rosaceae Fruit: The Pseudo-fruit (Rosehip)

Rosehips are not made from the carpels of a flower.  The seeds within are formed from carpels, with their thin coats.  But the red or orange fleshy part of a rosehip is called a hypanthium.  It is just a fleshy shell, housing the real fruit, the achenes (formed from carpels), each bearing one seed.  The hypanthium is formed from swollen receptacle flesh.

Japanese Rose Rosa rugosa rosehip cross section

The receptacle is the part of the plant where the flowering parts are attached, not the female flower parts themselves.  Receptacles lie below the flowering structure, and explains why we see that distinctive brown bit at the “bottom” of a rosehip.  They are the remnants of the calyx and other flowering structures, and if you look closely you can sometimes see old stamens.  Which makes that the “top” of the pseudo fruit, I suppose.

Rosehip anatomy diagram

Rosaceae Fruit: The Pome

One of the most commercially important Rosaceae, the apple, carries its’ seeds in a Pome.  A pome is a swelling of the receptacle, not the carpel.  It is built of several hypanthium (enlarged receptacle) which have grown together.

At the centre of this we find the pericarp which contains five to thirteen seeds (it’s commonly known as the apple core), depending on how successful pollination was.

Diagram showing the structure of the Pome (apple)

So next time you eat an apple or a pear, remember that the distinctive brown bit at the “bottom” is the residual flowering parts, specifically the calyx.

Pear sprig with blossom and fruit Pyrus communis

For more on pomes, check out this blog from Where the spruce eats.  To be sure you can tell your pome from your drupe, take a look at this blog from Toronto botanical garden.

Rosaceae Fruit: The Strawberry

The strawberry bears its’ seeds on the outside, and in fact every yellow seed is a strawberry fruit.  The fleshy part (which we eat so cheerily) is made from swollen receptacle tissue, rather like the apple (a pome).

Wild strawberry Fragaria vesca with external fruits and seeds on a swollen receptacle

However, the big difference is that the seeds of the strawberry are on the outside not the inside, and it is the only fruit which does this.  It is therefore not only delicious but also remarkable.

Conclusion

This blog is far from exhaustive, and I have no doubt I could find enough to write an entire blog about the core of an apple.  I hope this serves as an introduction to the variety and fascinating structures of the fruit of the  Rosaceae.

Sketchbook study of the Dog rose Rosa canina

The post Rosaceae Fruit appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

This series talks about some common wildflower families.  For basic terminology, look at my  the basics of botany blog, and another on different fruit types.  For more on scientific names, how they work, and why they matter,  look at What’s in a name 1 and part 2.  Take a look at  the other families I’ve looked at so far, the  Ranunulaceae (Buttercups), Caryophyllaceae (Campions), and Brassicaceae (Cabbages)  I hope to add more families over the coming months.

Rock cinquefoil Potentilla rupestris

I know a little about wildflowers,  but I am an amateur, and not a trained botanist.  So although I’ll try and get stuff right, if you see a mistake, please let me know.

Wildflower families: Rosaceae

The Rose family has 107 genera and over 3100 species globally.  Flowers have five or ten petals, and often have an epicalyx (see below).   Leaves have stipules, and tend to be alternate.  There’s a vast array of fruits in this family, from plums and apples to strawberries, Mountain avens with its dry achenes in one head, to Lady’s mantle with a lone seed in a receptacle.  As well as Roses, other Rosaceae garden flowers include Cotoneasters, Pyrocanthus, and Geums.  Our most common fruit crops are Rosaceae, and lots of highly varied wild flowers are in this family, including Cinquefoil, Meadowsweet, and Agrimony.

Entire leaved Cotoneaster Cotoneaster‌ integrifolius and other Cotoneaster species

(For more on telling Cotoneaster species apart, not a fun occupation, please check out my blog).

Rosaceae overview

Plants in this family have alternate leaves with stipules at their base.  A stipule is like a tiny leaf that grows in pairs at the base of a leaf stalk, next to the stem. Flowers have five or ten petals, lots of stamens, and can be solitary or in racemes. The name Rosaceae comes from the Latin for rose, Rosa.  There’s a suggestion that the name is far more ancient than that, possibly dated back to ancient Persia where ornamental roses were first grown.

Copyright Jersey Post: Roses Nostalgia Rosa Nostalgia

Some members of this family reproduce asexually, without seeds.  Strawberries do this with runners, while Raspberries, Blackberries, and some roses put up suckers at some distance from the parent plant.

Barren strawberry Potentilla sterilis showing a runner

Rosaceae Leaves

Rosaceae leaves are often lobed, with toothed or deeply notched margins.  (For more on leaf margins, look at my blog).  Some may be very deeply lobed, like Tormentil.

Tormentil Potentilla erecta

Some Rosaceae have compound leaves made of an array of smaller leaflets rather than simple ones  (For more on simple versus compound leaves check out my blog).  You can tell if a Rosaceae leaf is compound or simple by looking for a stipule.  You’ll only stipules at the base of a leaf, so if you look at a Rosaceae “leaf” and see no stipules, it could well be a leaflet.  Examine a rose leaf (compound, of many leaflets) or a Blackberry (likewise) and use the stipule position to decide where the stalk of the entire leaf (not that of a leaflet) attaches to the plant.  The shape of leaves, if not the size, is pretty consistent across the whole plant.

Agrimony Agrimonia eupatoria clearly showing basal stipules

Stipules can be tiny to really large, smooth to toothed.  Often the stipules can prove confusing as they resemble part of the main leaf.

Rosaceae Flowers

Rosaceae flowers are regular, with radial symmetry.  They have five petals, which tend to overlap, and five to ten sepals which also overlap but mostly do not fuse.

Blossom of Pear Pyrus communis

Some Rosaceae have an epicalyx, a whorl of bracts just below the calyx.  You can see this in the Cinquefoils and the Strawberry.  If you look closely at the green “top” of a strawberry, you can see the sepals, the epicalyx in a circle below them, and you may also see some residual stamens, clinging to the inner edges of the calyx array.  There’s a good blog on this, by The botanist in the kitchen.

Wild strawberry Fragaria vesca showing calyx and epicaylx

Flowers grow in compound clusters at the ends of the stem, known as cymes or racemes.  However, they can also be solitary.

They are bisexual with lots of stamens surrounding one or many free carpels.  The stamens, should you care to examine them, grow in whorls of 5 or more, but this can be really hard to see.  They bend inwards towards the flower.

Individual Hawthorn blossom Craetegus monogyna showing incurved stamens

Carpels (the female reproductive organ of a flower, consisting of a style, an ovary, and a stigma) tend to be superior, growing above the flowering structure.  In some species, they are Perigynous, meaning the flowering parts grow around the edge of the receptacle where the pistil (the tube down to the seed, through which pollen has to travel to fertilize the ovule and form a seed) is housed.  Cherries and roses are perigynous. For more on ovary positions look at my blog on the ovary.

Cherry Prunus avium

Rosaceae Fruit: Aggregates, Drupes and Achenes

There is an extraordinary amount of variety in the fruits of the Rosaceae, and I’ve ended up putting my research here into a separate blog which I’ll publish in a week or two.  Below is a summary.

Rosacea produce one to two seeded fruit, but that’s where the similarities end.

Consider the variation.  Like the Ranunculaceae, some species have assemblies of achenes. Some achenes have spikes to help dispersal, such as the Geum and Avens species.  Or have achenes twisted together so they look like a “mister whippy” ice-cream, a beautiful effect shown by Measdowsweet.

Assembled carpels of the Mountain avens Dryas octopetala

Some familiar soft fruit, like the blackberry and raspberry, are made of lots of individual fruits.  Each a little “blob” is called a drupelet, and contains one or two seeds.  These are known as aggregate fruit.  From the position of the calyx, you can tell these have developed from superior ovaries.

Copyright Jersey post 2017 Blackberry Rubus fruticosa

Drupes are formed when ovary tissue swells to become fleshy, enclosed in a thin skin.  At the centre of this you have a hard stone, a woody coat for the seed within.  Peaches, plums, cherries and apricots are drupes.

Plum Prunus prunus

Apples and pears are pomes.  A pome is formed from the receptacle, the area below the flowering structure.  This swells and within it you find the apple core with five to ten pips.

Somerset redstreak apple Malus domestica

Strawberries attach their fruit to the outside of a swollen receptacle.  The fleshy red bit isn’t a fruit at all.  The fruit is each of the tiny yellow seeds embedded in the red flesh.

Strawberries Fragaria × ananassa

Rosaceae: Other species

As well as the fruit discussed, Rosaceae contains the Lady’s mantle, Silverweed, Cinquefoil, Piri-piri bur, Rowan, Sorbus species, Cotoneasters, and (of course) roses.

Piri Piri bur Acaena novae-zelandiae

Conclusion

I hope this blog on the Rosaceae wildflower family was of some interest.  What a varied family!  I hope to do more of these blogs over the coming weeks and months.  References include my FSC botany course, the Common Families of Flowering Plants by Michael Hickey & Clive King, and information from Naturespot.

Rowan Sorbus aucuparia sprig with berries and blossom

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