Saw-wort
Saw-wort, Powerstock Common, Dorset
Flowerhead from side
Flowerhead from above
Small, lanceolate upper leaves
Saw-like lower leaf
Serratula tinctoria
Asteraceae
July to September
It is found throughout the country but is patchy in the Midlands
and the North and absent from parts of East Anglia and the
Southeast.
See the BSBI distribution map for Saw-wort
It grows in calcareous grassland, hay meadows, wet heaths,
open scrub and woodland, cliff-tops and beside roads and railways.
Saw-wort is a native, perennial, variable herb, growing up to 1m.
Flowers are up to 2cm, reddish-purple and dioecious - the flowers
shown are female with forked styles.
Bracts are pointed ovals with downy margins.
Upper leaves are sessile and lanceolate and lower leaves are
pinnately lobed with bristle-toothed margins.
Saw-wort was used to provide a greenish-yellow dye, hence
the latin name.
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Saw-wort, Powerstock Common, Dorset
Flowerhead from side
Flowerhead from above
Small, lanceolate upper leaves
Saw-like lower leaf
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