Milkwort

16 Sunday Jun 2024

Tags

British wildflowers, Common milkwort, milkwort, Polygala vulgaris

It’s always a delightful surprise to spot the tiny blue flowers of Milkwort in amongst the grasses and other wildflowers. Apparently, the flowers, which bloom from May right through to September in some locations, can also be deep purple and white but I’ve only ever seen this wonderful bright blue hue.

240616 milkwort (1)

Wikipedia reports that Classical and Renaissance writers stated ‘common milkwort was used medicinally as an infusion to increase the flow of a nursing mother’s milk’.

240616 milkwort (2)

I have assumed until now that the Milkwort plants I’ve seen, in various locations from grasslands to a coal spoil tip, have all been Common milkwort (Polygala vulgaris) but I admit that I have been so taken with the flowers that I haven’t paid much attention to the leaves. It seems that Heath Milkwort (Polygala serpyllifolia) is another possibility and, in future, I need to check whether the lower leaves are opposite each other on the stems (Heath milkwort) or alternate (Common milkwort).

240616 milkwort (3)

Grasslands wildflowers

18 Sunday Jun 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, wildflowers

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Aberbargoed Grasslands, British wildflowers, Common milkwort, Devil's-bit scabious, Marsh lousewort, Ragged robin

Presumably as a result of our lingering hot dry weather, the wildflowers at Aberbargoed Grasslands NNR were neither as prolific nor as exuberant as I’ve seen in previous years. The Bluebells had already gone over, the Heath spotted-orchids were looking as frazzled as I was soon feeling but there were some floral highlights I enjoyed seeing.

230618 devil's-bit scabious

Devil’s-bit scabious (Succisa pratensis)

230618 marsh lousewort

Marsh lousewort (Pedicularis palustris)

230618 milkwort

Common Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris)

230618 ragged robin

Ragged-robin (Silene flos-cuculi) and butterfly friend (Small pearl-bordered fritillary)

131/366 New bloomers

10 Sunday May 2020

Posted by sconzani in nature, spring, wildflowers

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Bittersweet nightshade, British wildflowers, Common milkwort, Cut-Leaved crane’s-bill, Flax, Goat's-beard, Spring colour, Wood avens

Here are this week’s newly flowering wildflowers …

200510 bittersweet nightshade

Bittersweet nightshade (Solanum dulcamara), also known as Woody nightshade and Deadly nightshade, though my Flora Britannica assures me this is actually one of the less poisonous members of the nightshade family.

200510 cut-leaved crane's-bill

Cut-leaved crane’s-bill (Geranium dissectum), one of the many lovely members of the extended Geranium family.

200510 flax

Flax (Linum usitatissimum), a small delicate plant, with beautiful pale blue flowers. This is rather different from the plant I, as a New Zealander, usually associate with this name – see my September 2018 post Flax.

200510 goat's-beard

Goat’s-beard (Tragopogon pratensis). As well as producing these glorious large sunny flowers, this wildflower, also known as Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon, has the most wonderful seedheads.

200510 wood avens

Wood avens (Geum urbanum) – you may know this wildflower by its alternate name of Herb Bennet.

Common milkwort (Polygala vulgaris). Discovered during my walk to Lavernock Nature Reserve earlier this week, this was the first time I’d seen this pretty little plant, though it’s very small and was almost hidden amongst the other wildflowers and grasses so it may be that I had simply overlooked it on previous visits.

One theory behind its common name is that the flowers of milkwort are shaped like udders and so medieval herbalists, following the ‘signature’ belief (that body parts can be treated by plants that resemble them), used to prescribe this plant to nursing mothers to increase their milk flow.