Weed datasheets

A native winter to summer annual weed common on cultivated land and waste places throughout the UK. It occurs on all soils but prefers loose, nutrient-rich, loamy or sandy soils.

Prickly sow-thistle is a troublesome annual or overwintering weed common on arable land. It is also found in gardens, on roadsides, waste places and other disturbed habitats.

Prickly lettuce is an annual, rarely biennial weed probably native in waste places, rough ground, disturbed areas and on walls. It also occurs in cultivated fields and along roadsides. It is frequent in England especially in East Anglia and the south east.

Pineappleweed is now common throughout the UK, and is still increasing, especially on tracks and paths and on cultivated land. It prefers an open loamy or sandy loam soil.

Petty spurge is a small, branched annual plentiful in gardens and arable fields. It is native and common throughout Britain. It appears indifferent to soil type and is recorded up to 1,500 ft.

Parsley piert is a small native annual sometimes plentiful in cornfields on dry, loamy, calcareous soils. It occurs mainly as a winter annual.

Pale persicaria is a native annual found throughout the UK in waste places and cultivated ground especially on damp soils. It also occurs in ditches, manure heaps, on river gravels and by ponds.

Oxford ragwort is an introduced annual to short-lived perennial weed of waste ground, walls and waysides.

Nipplewort is an upright annual, native in open woods, hedgerows, waste places and rough ground. It is common throughout the UK and appears to grow best on loam and clay soils.

Long-headed poppy is an annual or overwintering weed of arable land especially cornfields and of waste places and roadsides. It has a similar distribution to the common poppy but extends further north and is more frequent in Wales.