Extremely widespread little wildflower of heaths, moors and grassy places, Tormentil is a small plant which only reaches to about 30cm high. It's a creeping, downy, patch-forming perennial with stems which do not root at leaf junctions, (unlike Creeping Tormentil). The pretty bright yellow 4-petalled flowers (7-15mm across) are borne on slender, downy stalks, have notched petals and 4-12 carpels and 15-20 stamens. The 4 sepals are visible between the petals. They bloom from May to September. The sessile leaves are trifoliate with 2 large stipules at their base and the basal rosette dies back early. This is a native plant which belongs to the family Rosaceae.
It was in 1976, in Cleggan, Co Galway that I first recorded this wildflower and I photographed it in Laragh, Co Wicklow in 2005.
If you are satisfied you have correctly identified this plant, please submit your sighting to the National Biodiversity Data Centre
