Sussex Yellow-sorrel - Oxalis dillenii
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Species Description
Scattered and rare and mainly in the south. Habitat includes: pavements, arable fields, wasteland etc. Was introduced into cultivation in Britain in 1798.
Stace 4:
Oxalis dillenii Jacq. (O. stricta auct. non L.) - Sussex Yellow-sorrel.
Stems erect to decumbent, to 20cm, little-branched; leaves as in O. corniculata (leaflets 3, obcordate, with rounded margins and acute sinus, sparsely hairy especially on margins) but always green; flowers yellow, 6-11mm, (1)2-3(4) in umbels; pedicels and capsule as in O. corniculata (pedicels patent or reflexed in fruit; capsule with dense appressed hairs); seeds with white patches; (2n=16-24). Neophyte-naturalised; weed in sandy arable fields, reproducing by seed; rare in South England, West Sussex since 1950, Sark (Channel Islands), as a weed in some gardens in Britain and Ireland; North America. Perhaps over-recorded for O. stricta.
Key:
- Petals yellow
- No sepals cordate; leaves thin, not succulent
- Aerial stems present; bulbs 0
- Stems decumbent to erect, not or very sparsely rooting
- Capsules >3x as long as wide; petals 5-11mm, not purple-veined
- Pedicels (but not capsules) patent or reflexed in fruit; inflorescence an umbel; vegetative parts with only white simple hairs
Useful Links:
Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora
University of Minnesota Extension