Great Willowherb

I can find it quite hard to remember all the names of wild flowers, let alone properly identify some of them, so I thought I would start with the Great Willowherb or [Epilobium hirsutum] family Onagraceae.

It is a native perennial common throughout Britain, but somewhat rarer to find in the north of Scotland. It likes to grow in damp hedgerows, ditches, stream sides or marshes, and can grow as tall as 1.5 to 2 metres. Distinguished by its long and rather thin hairy leaves, which have sharply toothed edges and no stalk. The pink (pink to purple) flowers have four notched petals, with a white four lobed stigma, and green sepals. Flowers from late June into September. Folk names include: Codlins and Cream, Apple Pie, Cherry Pie. View my other posting about the seeds of the Great Willowherb.