Goat's-rue - Galega officinalis

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Alternative names
Goat's Rue
Description

Medium to tall hairless plant. Leaves pinnate with 4 to 8 pairs of oblong or lanceolate leaflets. Flowers white, to pale purplish lilac, 10 to 15 mm long in lateral racemes.

Identification difficulty
Habitat

Damp meadows, stream banks and waste ground.

When to see it

Flowers July to September.

Life History

Perennial.

UK Status

Widespread in England, particularly in the south east, scarcer elsewhere in Britain.

VC55 Status

Occasional and local in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 23 of the 617 tetrads.

  • Peter Smith
    Aylestone Meadows
    10 July 2013
  • Peter Smith
    Aylestone Meadows
    10 July 2013
  • David Nicholls
    Watermead CP
    06 September 2012
  • Graham Calow
    Sapcote
    29 September 2016
    seed pods
  • David Nicholls
    Watermead Country Park
    06 September 2012
  • Steve Mathers
    Watermead Park North
    20 June 2017
  • JamesCalow
    Verge off A6030 near Lewisher Road junction, Leicester
    30 January 2018

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2020+ | 2015-2019 | pre-2015

UK Map

Species data profile ?

Species profile

Common names
Goat's-rue
Species group:
Wildflowers
Kingdom:
Plantae
Order:
Fabales
Family:
Fabaceae
Records on NatureSpot:
22
First record:
06/09/2012 (Nicholls, David)
Last record:
25/08/2023 (Charity, Kenneth)

Total records by month

% of records within its species group

10km squares with records

The latest images and records displayed below include those awaiting verification checks so we cannot guarantee that every identification is correct. Once accepted, the record displays a green tick.

In the Latest Records section, click on the header to sort A-Z, and again to sort Z-A. Use the header boxes to filter the list.

Latest images

Latest records

  • Graham Calow
    Stanton Road, Sapcote
    29 September 2016
    leaves
  • Steve Mathers
    Watermead Country Park - North
    24 July 2016
  • Steve Mathers
    Watermead Country Park - North
    24 July 2016
  • David Nicholls
    Watermead Country Park
    06 September 2012
  • David Nicholls
    Watermead Country Park
    27 September 2013
  • Graham Calow
    Stanton Road, Sapcote
    29 September 2016
  • Graham Calow
    Stanton Road, Sapcote
    29 September 2016