Seasonal Wild Flowers

Hemlock

Conium maculatum

Apiaceae

June to August

It is found throughout the country.

See the BSBI distribution map for Hemlock

It is an archaeophyte and grows by water, alongside paths

and roads and on waste ground.

Hemlock is a foetid, biennial herb, growing up to 2.5m.

Flowers are in compound umbels with each umbel up to

5cm.

Flowers are 2mm with 5 white petals with slight clefts.

The stamens and anthers are white and appear before

the style and stigma (protandrous).

Bracts at the base of the umbel are small, few and bent

back.

The bracteoles at the bottom of the small umbels are also

small, bent back and on only one side of the small umbel.

The leaves are fern-like, ranging from 2 to 5 pinnate.

The stems are hollow, hairless and spotted with purple.

Hemlock sometimes forms large stands of plants in wet

meadows and along roads.

Hemlock is very poisonous and is the herb that poisoned

Socrates.

Hemlock in rough grassland

Large umbel

Small umbel

Few recurved upper bracks

Bracteoles on one side of small umbels

Leaves

Purple blotched stem