Wednesday 31 July 2013

ABC Wednesday: C is for Common Chicory


Common chicory, (Cichorium intybus), is a somewhat woody, perennial herbaceous plant usually with bright blue flowers. When flowering, chicory has a tough, grooved, and more or less hairy stem, from 30 to 100 centimetres (10 to 40 in) tall. The leaves are stalked, lanceolate and unlobed. The flower heads are 2 to 4 centimetres (0.79 to 1.6 in) wide, and usually bright blue, rarely white or pink. There are two rows of involucral bracts; the inner are longer and erect, the outer are shorter and spreading. It flowers from July until October.The achenes have no pappus (feathery hairs), but do have toothed scales on top.

It grows wild on the Trans Pennine Trail.

See the flower close-up on Hyde DP Xtra.

A contribution to ABC Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday.

3 comments:

  1. So pretty in the wild. I love blue flowers.

    ReplyDelete
  2. even better in the wild
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

    ReplyDelete
  3. Is it edible? Seems to me I've heard of it being so.

    Leslie
    abcw team

    ReplyDelete