Danish Scurvygrass
Latin name
Cochlearia danica
Family
Brassicaceae
Flowering season
February (January?) to September
English distribution
It is found throughout the country.
See the BSBI distribution map for Danish Scurvygrass
Habitat
Until the 1980s Danish Scurvygrass was found on coastal
cliffs, sand dunes and sea-walls.
Since then, it has become established on the central
reservation of motorways, dual carriageways, verges
adjacent to trunk roads and the grounds of motorway
service stations.
Description
It is a native, mat-forming herb growing up to 20cm.
The flowers are up to 5mm across and in loose
flowerheads.
There are 4 white to lilac petals, which are eliptical
and with short claws.
There are 6 stamens and a style with a capitate
stigma.
The fruits are spheroidal.
Basal leaves have long stalks and stem leaves,
short stalks.
The leaves are fleshy, angular and dark green.
The stems have a purple tinge.
It has a requirement for salt - hence its migration from
the coast to salt-treated roads.
Interestingly, although this has happened in Northern
Ireland, it hasn't in Southern Ireland where grit is used
instead of salt.
The flowers are mainly white, but tinged with mauve.
They are the first of the scurvygrasses to appear in the
UK in their natural habitats in January/February.
They become visible en masse in the central reservation
of motorways in late March and April when they form
a carpet of glistening white flowers.
The ball-shaped fruits readily detach from the mats
and roll along the roads in the slip-stream of vehicles,
thereby spreading the plant.
In June and July, the masses of dry balls on the mat
give the central reservations a silvery sheen.
Leaves are dark green, fleshy and ivy shaped.
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Danish Scurvygrass on central reservation of M6
Central reservation - taken during traffic jam
Close-up of plant mat
Flowers tinged with mauve
Leaves and spherical fruits
Spherical fruits