Wild Angelica
Angelica sylvestris
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Type
PlantStatus
CommonWidespreadSeason
Summer
Autumn Anywhere along the towpath verges.
Until it's in flower you might not notice the otherwise inconspicuous Wild Angelica. However, as soon as its large, pink- or purple-tinged clusters of white umbrella-like blooms come out from July to September, it's unmistakeable.
A member of the carrot family (an umbellifer), this wildflower favours damp places, such as moist meadows and wet woodlands.
Its flowers, which smell like the garden variety of angelica, used in cake decorations, attract all sorts of insects.
Wild Angelica flower umbels are rounded and robust. They're white and tinged with either pink or purple. The plant's stems (or furrows) are purpley in colour and hollow, and its lower leaves are divided.