Cabbage Family [Brassicaceae] |
status
flower
inner
morph
petals
stem
4th April 2007, Leeds & L/pool canal, Wigan. | Photo: © RWD |
A foot high annual most likely to be found in the nicks between pavement and wall. |
10th April 2011, Marsden, Yorkshire. | Photo: © RWD |
Stems leavesclasp the stem but are very few. Heart-shaped seed pods well separated on glaucous green stem. |
22nd June 2007, Walkden, Gtr M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Seed pods heart-shaped, sometimes flat, other times bulging, with ridge down centre. |
3rd June 2005, Leeds & L/pool Canal, Wigan. | Photo: © RWD |
Flowers small, barely 3mm across, white, petals hardly splayed, mostly clustered at the top. Four sepals. |
13 June 2011, Walkden, Gtr M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Flowers normally very slow to open properly. |
10th April 2011, Marsden, Yorkshire. | Photo: © RWD |
Four rounded white petals slightly splayed apart. Heart-shaped seed pod grows within, pushing aside the petals. |
10th April 2011, Marsden, Yorkshire. | Photo: © RWD |
Seed pods growing within the flowers. |
10th April 2011, Marsden, Yorkshire. | Photo: © RWD |
Six stamens bearing cream-coloured pollen at tip. seed pods growing within. |
22nd June 2007, Walkden, Gtr M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Seed pods have distinct ridge down centre and are on extended stalks, almost at right-angles to the main stem. |
10th April 2011, Marsden, Yorkshire. | Photo: © RWD |
Seed pods turn chocolate brown before drying to a straw colour. |
22nd June 2007, Walkden, Gtr M/cr. | Photo: © RWD |
Most leaves are in basal rosette. Leaves highly variable, sometimes with teeth other times deeply lobed. |
4th April 2007, Leeds & L/pool canal, Wigan. | Photo: © RWD |
Basal leaves here deeply lobed. |
Easily confused with :
Hybridizes with : Not to be semantically confused with: Shepherd's Needle (Scandix pecten-veneris) or Shepherd's Cress (Tessdalia nudicaulis) [plants of similar name] Uniquely identifiable characteristics Distinguishing Feature : Shepherd's-Purse is easily recognised by the highly distinctive heart-shaped seed pods said to resemble a purse. It grows on waste ground, cracks between paving and walls and or on disturbed cultivated soils. It flowers throughout the year apart from during the duration of hard winters. The flowers are small, between 2 and 3mm across and most do not open fully. It was once a wild flower of Europe, but it has since invaded the UK where it has become an urban weed.
It contains several flavonoids: Rutin, Hesperidin and
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Capsella | bursa-pastoris | ⇐ Global Aspect ⇒ | Brassicaceae |
Capsella (Shepherd's-Purses) |
Cabbage Family [Brassicaceae] |