A perennial wildflower which grows mostly on acid soils, grassy places and dunes, Lesser Hawkbit carries bright yellow flowerheads solitarily on unbranched, leafless stems, reaching about 25cm in height. These flowerheads (20-25mm across) are comprised of ray florets which are yellow above with a band of grey-violet below, almost the width of the ray. The end of each ray is divided into five small points and behind each flowerhead is a circle of bracts. The stiffly hairy linear leaves have short, wavy lobes and are in a basal rosette; the flowers bloom from June to October. It is a native plant which belongs to the family Asteraceae.
My first record of this wildflower was on Lamb Island, Co Kerry in 1977 and I photographed it at Sneem, Co Kerry in 2008.
If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, please submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre
