Pixel Wild
Broad-Leaved Dock
Broad-Leaved Dock
Rumex obtusifolius
Plantae
COMMON

Stats

Lifespan
Perennial
Size
Medium
Diet
Photosynthetic
Biome
Temperate grassland
Range
Europe
Movement
Sessile
Breeding
Seeds
Defense
Toxins
Status
Common

About

A sturdy perennial weed of roadsides and disturbed ground, bitter dock is famous for its large, ribbed leaves — traditionally rubbed on nettle stings for quick relief. Its tall rusty-red seed spikes can produce up to 60,000 seeds per plant each year.

Life cycle

  1. 1.
    seed
    A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
  2. 2.
    sprout
    A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
  3. 3.
    sapling
    A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
  4. 4.
    mature
    Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Order
Caryophyllales
Family
Polygonaceae
Genus
Rumex
Species
Rumex obtusifolius