Common name:
Common valerian
Family:
Scientific name:
Valeriana officinalis
Main flower color:
Range:
Across most of the UK; less common in the southeast, and in north Scotland
Height:
Up to 120 cm
Habitat:
Riverbanks, marshes, woodland, damp grassland
Flowers:
Flat-topped clusters, up to 12 cm in diameter, borne on stout pedicels at the top of the ridged stems, which are hairy towards the base, otherwise hairless. Flowers have a funnel-shaped, white or pale pink corolla that opens to five spreading lobes. The three stamens are exserted, topped by pink anthers
Leaves:
Opposite, hairless, stalked, pinnately divided into narrowly lanceolate leaflets, with prominent side veins and a few teeth along the margins. Upper stem leaves are sessile, with untoothed leaflets
Season:
June to August
Rarity:
★★★★★
