Hawkweed Oxtongue - Picris hieracioides

Stiffly hairy plant. Stems branched. Leaves lanceolate to oblong, toothed or untoothed. Lower leaves stalked, upper leaves small and unstalked, clasping the stem. Flowerheads yellow, 20 to 35 mm, stalked in a cluster. Flower bracts lanceolate with blackish lines, the outer bracts shorter and spreading. 

Good photographs required. 

It is mainly a plant of calcareous soils, occurring in the less heavily grazed swards in chalk and limestone grassland, on roadsides and railway banks, and in quarries and lime-pits. It is intolerant of heavy grazing and is a poor competitor in dense vegetation.

In flower during July, August and September or October.

A biennial or perennial herb.

Local, with most records coming from southern England. Mainly coastal in Wales.

Occasional, possibly becoming scarce in Leicestershire and Rutland.