ID please - riverside plant

[rscott74]

These images were taken yesterday at the edge of the Wear in Durham CIty. There were a lot of them confined to within a few meters of the river edge. Can anyone provide an ID please?

[Bub-les]

I think its butterbur
Barbara

[ericrovve]

Petasites hybridus - Butterbur
Did you smell them?

[mrs fish]

I think it might be Butterbur Petasites hybridus

[rscott74]

Thanks for your replies. This is a new one to me although I only started taking an interest in IDing flowers last summer so no doubt I'll find a few more 'strangers ' over the coming months. I didn't smell it - what might I expect?

[rscott74]

Following your responses I've had a look at the 'plantpress' web site which states
'In southern England, nearly all butterbur plants are male; the looser, later-flowering female plants are found mainly under shade in northern and central England'

Can I assume my images are female? Has anyone got a picture of the male?

[Tiggrx]

Your plants are male, you can see the stamens sticking out of the flowers.
Female's do have looser spikes of flowers and look noticeably different.

Here is a pic of Carlj's from the Gallery

[rscott74]

Thanks Tiggrx. The female does look different. Are the plants really different genders or or is it only a reference to visual characteristics. Are there other flowers that have male/female distinctions like Butterburr? It is interesting that the differences occur geographically. Perhaps they co-exist around Birmingham!

[ericrovve]

I think now this is perhaps Petasites fragrans as the leaves are out with the flowers - that's the one that is perfumed

[Tiggrx]

The picture is of P. hybridus rather than P. fragrans - compare with this picture from the Gallery by Hornbeam:


The males and females plants really are seperate males and females. The majority of the plant's spread is vegetative so the two sexes do not need to meet.
The male plant is found over most of the country, while the female is more restricted to the north (though occasionally colonies occur in the south).
I remember hearing a theory that only the male plants are native and that the female ones are introduced. Butterbur leaves were formerly used for wrapping butter and the larger leaved female plant may have been preferable. Not sure how true this is

Originally Posted by ericrovve

I think now this is perhaps Petasites fragrans as the leaves are out with the flowers - that's the one that is perfumed