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Common Sorrel
Common Sorrel
Rumex acetosa
Plantae
COMMON

Stats

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

About

Common sorrel is a perennial meadow herb whose arrow-shaped leaves have a bright, lemony tang from oxalic acid — the same compound that makes rhubarb tart. It has been harvested as a salad green and soup souring agent across Europe for thousands of years.

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 acetosa