Photographs: Ballingeary, Co. Cork

Common Cow-Wheat Melampyrum pratense Lus an tsagairt Family: Scrophulariaceae Flowering time: May - September. Hemiparasitic annual. Native. Pale or golden yellow flowers in pairs in leaf-axils. Lower lip is horizontal, often with purplish markings near mouth and corolla tube is longer than the calyx. 4 large seeds, distributed by ants. Hairless leaves are narrow oval-lanceolate. Bracts are entire or sharp-toothed. Frequent in acidic woods, scrub, heath, moorland. Tolerates shade. Similar: Small Cow-wheat, Melampyrum sylvaticum. Very rare, only found in a few sites in Northern Ireland.

Cow Wheat, Melampyrum pratense, Lus an tsagairt