More plants for id thanks

Use this forum for identification of plants and flowers found in the UK. To allow us to help provide accurate identification we need clear pictures of the whole plant, where it is growing and close up pictures of flowers, buds or seed heads if any available. It would also be useful to see pictures showing the leaf attached to the stem.
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TortyPerson
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Joined: 15 Aug 2021, 11:06

More plants for id thanks

Post by TortyPerson » 14 Mar 2022, 16:17

[attachment=2]20220314_115904.jpg[/attachment] [attachment=1]20220314_115006.jpg[/attachment][attachment=0]20220314_115948.jpg[/attachment]

Hi all,

Just want to check these as I wasn't sure if I have id'd them correctly or not.

1. yellow flower. Is this a dandelion? The leaves weren't serrated so I'm not sure.

2. Small green leaves - any idea?

3. I thought this was plantain but the leaves seem thicker with silvery hair?

Thanks
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TortyPerson
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by TortyPerson » 14 Mar 2022, 16:19

[attachment=2]20220314_120426.jpg[/attachment][attachment=1]20220314_120048.jpg[/attachment][attachment=0]20220314_120232.jpg[/attachment]

1. dandelion?

2. No idea.

3. Cats ear?

Thanks!

TP
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lin
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by lin » 15 Mar 2022, 00:54

Hi TP. I have answered alongside your suggestions below.

1. yellow flower. Is this a dandelion? The leaves weren't serrated so I'm not sure. I would say Hawkweed.

2. Small green leaves - any idea? Not a clear photo TP but it looks like one of the Trefoils

3. I thought this was plantain but the leaves seem thicker with silvery hair? It does look like Plantain so perhaps a cold spell has caused the different flush on the leaves.
Let’s see what Nina thinks.

Set Two…

1. dandelion? Yes

2. No idea. Me neither :lol: send again when it’s grown a little more

3. Cats ear? It could be Catsear but also might be one of the Hawkweeds too.

So sorry for the short answers TP but me batteries going to go any second.
Lin

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Nina
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by Nina » 15 Mar 2022, 10:35

Hi TP,

I think the first photo with the yellow flower is a dandelion rather than a Hawkbit. There are 240 species of dandelion in the UK, and many of them have no serrations -- and some plants have serrated leaves and leaves with no serrations on the same plant). The reason I think it's a dandelion is the flower stalk looks more like a dandelion than a Hawkbit (but I could be wrong).

The second photo looks like one of the vetches -- probably common vetch. If you put Vetch into the search box on our website you'll see four or five entries for vetches, and some are more edible than others. Also, last year you posted a photo of a very similar looking plant, and Lin ID'd it as a vetch.

The last one is, I'm pretty sure, a plantain -- possibly the hairy plantain (but I'm not sure that it grows in Ireland). But it does look like a Plantain to me.

Nina

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Nina
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by Nina » 15 Mar 2022, 10:37

Hi TP

In this second set of photos the first one is definitely a dandelion, the second one might also be a dandelion, but I can't really see enough of it, so maybe wait until it grow a bit bigger, and yes, the last one looks like Cat's Ear. Your ID skills are coming on a treat!

Nina

TortyPerson wrote:
> 20220314_120426.jpg20220314_120048.jpg20220314_120232.jpg
>
> 1. dandelion?
>
> 2. No idea.
>
> 3. Cats ear?
>
> Thanks!
>
> TP

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Nina
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by Nina » 15 Mar 2022, 15:18

Hi TP,

Lin and I have been trying to sort out the exact ID of your first photo (the one with the yellow flower). We think it is either Hawkbit or Dandelion, and it doesn't matter in the whole scheme of things which it is, because they both have the same edibility rating (feed in moderation), but for our own peace of mind we need to get it right. So could you possibly do two things for us?

1. Can you take a close-up photo of the underside of that flower? We need to see the calyx, which is the green structure that supports the yellow flower and is made up of overlaping green petal-like sepals. It is different in Hawkweed and Dandelion.

2. Could you also pull our a lot of that grass that is covering the middle of the plant and take another photo, so that we can clearly see all of the leaves of the plant in question, with the flower stalk coming out of the middle?

Thanks very much!

Nina

TortyPerson
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by TortyPerson » 16 Mar 2022, 11:00

Thanks Nina and Lin - yes I will but currently our neighbour has parked on top of it :D so I will have to wait till they have moved the car. Watch this space.

TP

TortyPerson
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Joined: 15 Aug 2021, 11:06

Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by TortyPerson » 17 Mar 2022, 19:02

[attachment=0]20220317_180247.jpg[/attachment][attachment=1]20220317_180238.jpg[/attachment][attachment=2]20220317_180221.jpg[/attachment]

Hi Nina and Lin,

Are these any good?


Thanks,

TP
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Nina
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by Nina » 19 Mar 2022, 07:58

Hi TP, and sorry for the delay. Yes, that is a dandelion, so fine to feed. Thanks for sending in the clearer photo, and happy munching. If your neighbour has been parking on top of the plant then I would give the leaves a rinse before you feed them, just in case fumes from the car's exhaust have got on them.

Nina

TortyPerson
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by TortyPerson » 21 Mar 2022, 11:37

Thanks Nina

CritterMama
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by CritterMama » 25 Mar 2022, 14:19

Hi all! Good discussion on Dandelions vs. Cat's Ear. One of my favorite books is "Edible Wild Plants - Wild Foods from Dirt to Plate" by John Kallas (link below). Beginning on p. 274, he discusses the differences between the leaves of these 2 plants, as well as chicory - I haven't found any chicory yet but my yard has tons of the other 2 (who needs/wants grass?)

These are the things I key in on when picking them in my yard. My little guy, Scoot, likes them both.
1. Cat's Ear
- has coarse hairs all over its upper surface (makes it "fuzzy" like the inside of the ear of a cat)
- also has coarse hairs on the underside, particularly along the main vein on the back
- developed leaves grow relatively flat, but may curve upward*
- bloom later in the year than dandelions
2. Dandelion
- leaves are "mostly hairless"
- main vein sticks up above the blade and generally has some "redness" to it (this is the primary thing I look for)
- lobes are pointed, mostly downward (sometimes outward)
- blooms in early spring (although I have picked a few making a valiant effort in the late fall)

This week I picked dandelion greens and dead nettle for the first time this year. Scoot is very happy about it!

https://www.wildflowers-and-weeds.com/E ... _Foods.htm

* Fun Fact: In an area that is regularly mowed, Cat's Ear will pull its rosette down into the dirt so the mower blades pass right over it without harming the leaves. In areas that are not regularly mowed, the rosettes can position much higher off the ground. Kallas calls this "a wonderful example of co-evolution". I call it gobsmackingly amazing! :o
Critter Mama

One Husband, one Bearded Dragon, one Panther Chameleon, one Labrador Retriever, and now a baby Hermann's Tortoise!

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Nina
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Re: More plants for id thanks

Post by Nina » 26 Mar 2022, 08:02

What an interesting post! Yes, the fuzziness of Cat's Ear leaves is a definite giveaway, and sometimes the edges of the leaves are a more regular rounded scallop than Dandelion (but not always). And of course as soon as they flower it's obvious, as the Cat's Ear flowers are borne on the end of a rather long, wiry green flower stalk, and have multiple flowers on each stalk, as opposed to the pinky-creamy coloured flower stalk of the dandelions.

It sounds like Scoot is having a great diet!

Nina

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