Trailing TormentilScientific Name: Potentilla anglica |
Trailing Tormentil is a native to Europe, but has become naturalised in other parts of the world where it was introduced as a garden plant and it has escaped to the wild.
It may be mistaken on first sighting, for a Creeping Buttercup due to the similarity of the flowers and seedheads, but the leaves are very different and it forms a more compact clump which is not as invasive.
The flowers of the Tormentil are borne singly on a stalk arising from leaf nodes along the creeping stems, appearing from June to September and usually have four petals - sometimes five. A close relative P.reptans can hybridise with it - the offspring are sterile. The flowers of P. reptans have five petals.
The leaves are palmate with three or five leaflets and are borne on stalks about 1-2cm long.
It is not usually a problem weed, but can invade the lawn. Small infestations can be weeded out. Use a spring-tined rake to lift the stems before mowing to reduce the spread.
Weedkillers to use:-Glyphosate, systemic action killing the whole plant. Apply as spot weeder in the lawn. Treat the whole lawn with a selective weedkiller on its own ( eg. Verdone Extra) or a weed-and-feed type, it will probably take two or three applications to eradicate it because of the reservoir of seed and more mature plants may recover.
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