Wild carrot daucus carota

[JonnyP]

Now is a good time to spot (and maybe use) wild carrot...This is the original, the one from which all your supermarket carrots originated from, and is edible, but its not going to have a nice orange tap root, so don't get too excited. It has been used before in times of famine. The root does smell and taste of carrot but its tough and not very large, but it will improve with cultivating it...
The plant is easy to spot being an umbellifer. It grows best on chalk grassland near the sea, but you can find it all over the british isles on grassland....
It tends to grow in a small clump, with a few shoots rather that just a single stem like most other umbellifers. It will grow from about 1 foot to 3 foot heigh and the best way to id it is that it often has a small purple flower right in the center of the flowering head, see pics below...

The flower head about to flower....

The open flower head showing the central purple flower....

Please add to this thread if you wish, but please do not take what I say about the plant to be completely accurate. Many plants of the carrot family are poisonous, some are deadly, so please make certain of your identification before using the plant....

 

[Wayne]

As Jon has already said I tend to avoid teaching about the carrot family as mistakes can be life changing. Do check your id in at least 2 books. Happy hunting.

 

[xylaria]

It tends to grow in a small clump, with a few shoots rather that just a single stem like most other umbellifers. It will grow from about 1 foot to 3 foot heigh and the best way to id it is that it often has a small purple flower right in the center of the flowering head, see pics below...

So is the purple flower in the middle a defining feature of the plant? I have seen what I IDed as wild carrot before, but never certain enough to entertain the idea of consumption.

I am frightened of umbrellifers in the way most people think of wild fungi. I would love to try wild carrot.

mistakes can be life changing

Is that politik speak for 'Stuff up and you are dead'

 

[JonnyP]

So is the purple flower in the middle a defining feature of the plant? I have seen what I IDed as wild carrot before, but never certain enough to entertain the idea of consumption.

I am frightened of umbrellifers in the way most people think of wild fungi. I would love to try wild carrot.

Is that politik speak for 'Stuff up and you are dead'

Yes it is a defining feature, though its not on all the flower heads.. I will get some more photo's today as I should of taken one of the whole plant....

 

[JonnyP]

Here are a few more photo's of the plant....
The plant....I think they come up as a single stem now, but have other off shoots, some directly from the ground. They do seem to grow in clumps though, but I did see one or two on their own...

The leaves.....similar to other unbelifers...

The unopened flower head....

And the seed head.....This makes the plant recognisable and is a beautiful form...

 

[TheGreenMan]

Very, very nice posts, Jon. Wonderfully illustrated.

Best regards,
Paul.

 

[JonnyP]

Very, very nice posts, Jon. Wonderfully illustrated.

Best regards,
Paul.

Thank you kind sir...