Hemlock | Plant Information

Please keep in mind that it is illegal to uproot a plant without the landowner's consent and care should be taken at all times not to damage wild plants. Wild plants should never be picked for pleasure and some plants are protected by law.
For more information please download the BSBI Code of Conduct PDF document.

Plant Data

Flowering Months:

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Order:

Apiales

Family:

Apiaceae (Carrot)

Also in this family:

Alexanders, Bladder-seed, Bur Chervil, Burnet-saxifrage, Cambridge Milk Parsley, Caraway, Common Hogweed, Coriander, Corky-fruited Water Dropwort, Corn Parsley, Cow Parsley, Cowbane, Creeping Marshwort, Cumin, Edible Carrot, False Thorow-wax, Field Eryngo, Fine-leaved Water Dropwort, Fool's Parsley, Fool's Watercress, Garden Angelica, Garden Parsley, Giant Fennel, Giant Hogweed, Great Pignut, Greater Burnet-saxifrage, Greater Water Parsnip, Ground Elder, Hartwort, Hemlock Water Dropwort, Hog's Fennel, Honewort, Knotted Hedge Parsley, Lesser Marshwort, Lesser Water Parsnip, Longleaf, Masterwort, Milk Parsley, Moon Carrot, Parsley Water Dropwort, Pepper-saxifrage, Pignut, Pink Masterwort, River Water Dropwort, Rock Samphire, Rough Chervil, Sanicle, Scots Lovage, Sea Carrot, Sea Holly, Shepherd's Needle, Shrubby Hare's-ear, Siberian Hogweed, Slender Hare's-ear, Small Hare's-ear, Spignel, Spreading Hedge Parsley, Stone Parsley, Sulphurwort, Sweet Cicely, Thorow-wax, Tubular Water Dropwort, Upright Hedge Parsley, Whorled Caraway, Wild Angelica, Wild Carrot, Wild Celery, Wild Fennel, Wild Parsnip

Type:

Flower

Life Cycle:

Annual, Biennial or Perennial

Maximum Size:

2 metres tall

Habitats:

Ditches, farmland, meadows, riverbanks, roadsides, wasteland, waterside, wetland.

Flower:

White, 5 petals

White umbels to 6cm wide with small bracts underneath.

Fruit:

Dark browns small, smooth, ridged and flattened capsule. Each fruit contains two seeds. Up to 3mm in length.

Leaves:

Bipinnate, hairy, fern-like leaves. Triangular, up to 20 inches (50cm) long.

Aroma:

The whole plant smells foetid.

Other Names:

Beaver Poison, Beaver Poisoner, Break-your-mother's-heart, Bunk, Caise, California Fern, Carrot Fern, Common Hemlock, Conium, Deadly Hemlock, Deadly Hemlock, Devil's Bread, Devil's Flower, Devil's Porridge, Gypsy Flower, Herb Bennet, Hever, Kecksies, Kex, Lady's Lace, Musquash Root, Nebraska Fern, Poison Hemlock, Poison Parsley, Poison Stinkweed, Scabby Hands, Snake-weed, Spotted Corobane, Spotted Cowbane, Spotted Hemlock, Spotted Parsley, Winter Fern, Wode Whistle, Woomlick.

Frequency (UK):

Common