What is this

Pat · #1 (**permalink**) 14-11-2005, 08:58 PM

I took a different entrance into the field today and noticed a plant that I've never seen before and I've been walking there for about 50 years, it's about between 2 and 3 ft tall and it's got red berries coming out of pods, I've posted some pics of it in the unidentified Gallery, perhaps one of you could identify it for me, thanks.

Helen · #2 (**permalink**) 14-11-2005, 09:08 PM

I'll go have a look. Perhaps you may want to post a link though from your photo directly into this thread, making it easier for people to look at your photo.

Here's how to do it:

1. Go to your photo.
2. In your address bar at the top, copy the address of the page. You can do this by right clicking on your mouse. And choosing "copy"
3. Come back into this thread
4. Right click again on your mouse, and this time choose "paste".
5. Lo and behold, and direct link to your photo will appear in this thread

henrya · #3 (**permalink**) 15-11-2005, 09:22 AM

Well, it's one of the Irises. Probably Stinking Iris (Iris foetidissima) but I think one would need to see the flowers to be certain as there are several introduced species. Do the leaves stink when you crush them?

henrya

Pat · #4 (**permalink**) 15-11-2005, 05:59 PM

Went up to see the plant again this afternoon and tried crushing a leaf but it didn't smell of anything. Looked it up on google images and thats what it is, I also had a good look around the hedgerows and found quite a few of them scattered about, I can't think why I haven't seen them before because I'm a pretty observant person most of the time. Are they quite common plants?

henrya · #5 (**permalink**) 16-11-2005, 09:25 AM

Quote
tried crushing a leaf but it didn't smell of anything.
Endquote

The books seem to disagree about how much, and of what, it smells. One says it stinks, but another says it doesn't stink but smells of raw meat. Perhaps it's a seasonal thing.

Quote
I also had a good look around the hedgerows and found quite a few of them scattered about, I can't think why I haven't seen them before because I'm a pretty observant person most of the time. Are they quite common plants?
Endquote

Locally frequent is the book's cryptic comment. Mainly south of a line from the Wash to Skomer, with some in north Wales, and scattered introductions/escapes north as far as Nairn. Mainly calcareous soils. Not very easy to spot when it's flowering as it can easily be obscured by surrounding vegetation.

henrya