Seasonal Wild Flowers

Latin name

Oxalis stricta

Family

Oxalidaceae

Flowering season

May to September

English distribution

It is fouind mainly in the South and Southeast and is

scattered elsewhere.

See the BSBI distribution map for Upright Yellow-sorrel

Habitat

It is a neophyte which has been grown in the UK as a

garden plant since the 1650s and known in the wild

since the 1820s.

It can be a garden weed and grows on disturbed

ground in some shade.

Description

Upright Yellow-sorrel is a stoloniferous, mainly annual,

erect herb growing up to 40cm.

The flowers are yellow and up to 9mm. They are aften

closed.

The 5 petals have red flecks at the base.

There are 10 stamens with yellow anthers, sometimes

with some of the anthers missing.

There are 5 styles with light green capitate stigmas.

The 5 sepals are lanceolate and slightly hairy.

Flower stalks are hairy.

The seeds are in an upright, slightly hairy capsule up

to 12mm.

The capsules explode and can send seeds up to 2m.

Leaves have 3 cone-shaped, leaflets, each with 2

rounded lobes and up to 2cm. They may be folded

downwards.

Stems are erect and slightly hairy.

Upright Yellow-sorrel is less common than Procumbent

Yellow-sorrel.