Herb Robert | Plant Information

Plant Data

Order:

Geraniales

Family:

Geraniaceae (Cranesbill)

Type:

Flower

Flowering Months:

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

Flower:

Pink, 5 petals

5 pale to dark pink petals, occasionally white. Orange pollen, hairy calyx.

Fruit:

Elongated, ovoid, hairy schizocarp, with a beak-like tip. A schizocarp is a type of dry fruit which splits into single-seeded parts at maturity. These parts are called 'mericarps'.

Leaves:

3 to 5 deeply lobed palmate leaves on long stalks. The lobes are narrow and sharp-tipped.

Maximum Size:

30 centimetres tall

Foraging Notes:

All parts of the plant are edible. The flowers and leaves can be used to make tea. The fresh leaves can be used in salads.
Never consume a wild plant unless you are 100% certain that it is safe to eat and you know that you have identified it correctly.

Aroma:

The smell of the foliage is unappealing.

Other Names:

Arb Rabbits, Baby's Pinafore, Bachelor's Buttons, Bloodwort, Crow's Foot, Cry Baby, Cuckoo's Eye, Death Come Quickly, Doll's Shoes, Dolly's Apron, Dolly's Nightcap, Dolly's Pinafore, Dove's Foot, Dragon's Blood, Drunkards, Felonwort, Fox Geranium, Geranium, Goose Bill, Granny's Needles, Granny's Nightcap, Granny-thread-the-needle, Gypsies, Gypsy's Parsley, Headaches, Hen and Chickens, Hop-o'-my-thumb, Jack Horner, Jam Tarts, Jenny Flower, Jenny Hood, Jenny Wren, Joe Stanley, John Hood, Kiss Me, Kiss Me Love at the Garden Gate, Kiss Me Quick, Knives and Forks, Lady Janes, Little Jack, Little Jan, Little Robin, Mary James, Pink Pinafores, Puck, Red Robin, Robert's Geranium, Robin Hood, Robin In the Hedge, Robin Redbreast, Robin-i'-th'-hedge, Robin's-eye, Squinter-pip, Stinker Bobs, Stinking Bob, Stinky Bob, Storksbill, Wren's Flower.

Frequency (UK):

Abundant

Habitats:

Farmland, gardens, heathland, hedgerows, moorland, mountains, rocks, towns, walls, woodland.