All three common species of buttercup are now in flower now on my patch, making them easy to tell apart. Bulbous buttercup Ranunculus bulbosus is the easiest – just look at the sepals below the cup of petals. In this species the sepals bend back and touch the flower stalk (top picture). That leaves creeping buttercup Ranunculus repens and meadow buttercup Ranunculus acris, whose green sepals both support the cup of petals. For them, just take a close look at the flower stalk. In creeping buttercup (middle picture) it has ridges and furrows, whilst in meadow buttercup (bottom picture) it’s smooth and more or less round in cross section.
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I must admit I look and think - another buttercup - never realising there were different types. Now I know. Nice to learn something new about the things I take for granted.
ReplyDeleteLovely pics against the sky.
Great pictures, and you make it easy to tell them apart. No more just a Buttercup; I'll know which one now. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI like those pictures. The way you shot them against that sky is so excellent!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the comments Les, Keith and John,there are some fabulous displays of buttercups in Teesdale, Swaledale and Wensleydale at this time of year - I'm hoping to head off in that direction at the weekend if the weather improves.
ReplyDeleteGlad I found this. Reblogging (if I can!)
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting Nellie!
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