Description

Bugloss is a short (up to 50cm) bristly annual which produces compact sprays of small blue flowers from April to September, followed by fruits each consisting of four almost conical nutlets. The wavy-edged lanceolate leaves have swollen bases and are covered with stiff hairs.

Habitat Information

Bugloss is most commonly found as a weed of arable fields on well drained soils but can also be found on sandy heaths, dunes and waste ground. A long established introduction it has declined since the 1950s as a result of agricultural intensification and the increased use of herbicides.

Growing Information

Grows freely from seed sown in spring or autumn.
It can be added to the cornfield annual mixtures EC1 and EC2 or EM6 although as an annual it will require bare soil to reseed into.