Downy perennial of river-banks, lakeshores and fens, this is a most handsome plant which blooms from June to August. Growing to about 1 metre high, it carries starry, 5-petalled, cup-shaped yellow flowers (15-20mm across) in open, pyramidal clusters on erect, woolly stems. The sepals have orange margins which are also toothed. The short-stalked, ovate to lanceolate leaves are opposite, in whorls of 2-4, often dotted with black. This is a native plant and it belongs to the Primulaceae family.
I first found this plant on the shores of Lough Derg, Co Tipperary in 1983 and I re-found and photographed it on the shores of Lough Mask, Co Mayo in 2009 in conditions which were, to say the least, a little damp. In fact it was difficult to find a specimen which managed to keep its head above the water!
If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, please submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre
