WildBristol.uk - Discovering Wildlife in Bristol

Widespread but local throughout the Southern half of the UK mainly along a line from the Severn Estuary to East Anglia. Habitat includes: Sticky clay, better drained neutral to calcareous soils in places such as hedgerows, banks, rough / scrubby grassland, roadside verges, river banks, ditches rhynes, wasteland etc. Growing habit: Biennial. Flowers: July to September. ID: Smells like petrol when crushed. Other names include: Hedge Stonewort, Bastard Stone Parsley.

J.W.White:

Native ; in damp hedge-bottoms and grassy places. Fairly well distributed throughout are area, but not what should be called a common plant. It has always enough interest to arrest attention on a ramble, and so localities are here detailed.

Flowers: August and September.

Sea Mills. Combe Dingle and lane towards Westbury. Henbury Hill. Plentiful by the roadside between Stapleton and Hambrook. Frenchay ; D. Fry. Kingswood. Bitton. Roadside between Warmley and Wyck. Northwoods, west of Winterbourne. Ableton Lane, Northwick and Pilning. Ingst. Aust. Littleton-on-Severn. Rockhampton. Hill. S. The New Cut and Ashton Fields ; Miss Atwood in Swete, Fl. Beggar's Bush Lane. Brislington. Very abundant between Keynsham and Queen Charlton. Ursleigh Hill, Stanton Drew and Corston ; D. Fry. Between Chew Stoke and Dundry. Yatton. Wick St. Lawrence. Grassy roadsides between Worle and Woodspring priory. Kewstoke Bay, Weston-super-Mare, Cheddar, Draycott and Wookey ; Fl. Som. Wells ; Miss Livett. Frequent between Twerton and Englishcombe. Common under hedges about Bath ; Fl. Bathon.