Hieracium pollichiae Roffey's Hawkweed

A fairly distinctive hawkweed with blotched leaves that are deeply cut into rather gross teeth, particularly the basal leaves. The blotches are usually very obvious in plants growing in exposed conditions but sometimes fade and then rather inconspicuous. The involucral bracts (phyllaries) and the upper parts of the inflorescence stalks are covered in long eglandular hairs (see photo) with some stellate hairs and few short, dark glandular hairs. The long eglandular hairs give the phyllaries a distinctive shaggy appearance, quite different to that of Spotted Hawkweed (Hieracium spilophaeum). Our plants conform closely with the description given in Mike Shaw's Hawkweeds of South East England in that they are quite floriferous with large inflorescences. It is probably a native species in southeast England but it may be a neophyte in south Wales where it is uncommon, but possibly spreading. It occurs along shady forest roads in West Glamorgan but it is quite persistent and invasive and found occasionally as a garden weed. It belongs to Section Vulgata.

Native (possibly neophyte in West Glamorgan)