Common Purslane

Portulaca oleracea

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:

Caryophyllales

Family:

Portulacaceae (Purslane)

Type:

Flower

Life Cycle:

Annual

Maximum Size:

50 centimetres tall

Habitats:

Farmland, roadsides, seaside, wasteland.

Flower:

Yellow, 5 petals

Yellow, 5-petalled flowers. The petals are notched at the ends. Flowers can appear all year round but are most common in mid-to-late summer. Pollinated by insects.

Fruit:

The fruit is a pod which produces tiny, dark brown or blackish seeds. The seeds mature from July to September.

Leaves:

An annual, erect or sprawling plant with slightly succulent, spoon-shaped leaves. The leaves are in opposite pairs (but sometimes alternate) along the stems. The stems are smooth and reddish.

Other Names:

Duckweed, Garden Purslane, Green Purslane, Little Hogweed, Moss Rose, Pigwee, Pigweed, Portulaca, Purslane, Pursley, Pusley, Red Root, Rock Moss, Wild Portulaca.

Frequency (UK):

Unusual

Distribution Map

Reproduced by kind permission of the BSBI.

Click to open an Interactive Map