Tags
bindweed, Bindweed flower, British flora, British wildflowers, Field bindweed, Hedge bindweed, Large bindweed
There are, in fact, five species of bindweed in Britain but I’ve only encountered three so far. One, the Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) is, I think, the easiest to identify: it’s quite small, and its flowers are a delicate swirl of pink and white (as shown below).
Then there are the two bindweeds that have large white flowers, Hedge bindweed (Calystegia sepium) and the aptly named Large bindweed (Calystegia silvatica). To my untrained eye, these two look remarkably similar but I have recently learnt how to tell them apart so I thought I’d share that little snippet of knowledge. My wildflower key tells me that Hedge bindweed has an epicalyx of 2 bracteoles that don’t (or scarcely) overlap, whereas the Large bindweed has strongly inflated, overlapping bracteoles. Okay, so you might now be thinking, “Huh?” Well, the photos below show the difference: Hedge, left, and Large, right. Easy now, right?
Oh, and one more thing I found out while looking at all those bindweeds. The flowers often look like a little fairy has come along and snipped pretty patterns in their petals with miniature scissors. A fanciful idea I admit, but it’s almost true – these have been created by bees and other insects desperate to get at the sweet nectar inside so they cut their way into the flower bud before it opens.
Rosie Plummer said:
Brilliantly explained – thanks!
LikeLiked by 1 person
sconzani said:
Well, thank you kindly, Rosie. 🙂
LikeLike
Michelle Novak said:
I’ve nominated you for The Versatile Blogger Award! Best Wishes!
LikeLiked by 1 person
sconzani said:
That’s very kind of you, Michelle, thanks. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Val said:
I used to see bindweed often when I lived in a city, now I’m in the country I don’t think I’ve seen any in ages! It’s has such lovely flowers.
LikeLiked by 1 person
sconzani said:
Interesting, Val. I hadn’t thought about it being a city plant, presumably linked to waste sites created by humans. I love the flowers too, as do lots of little critters, of course. Photos to come in a future blog. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Jon Wallis said:
I rather like the idea of bees and other insects wielding miniature scissors…
LikeLiked by 1 person
sconzani said:
Hehe … leaf-cutter bees do it all the time, of course. Snip, snip, snip. 🙂
LikeLike