Crepis biennis Rough Hawk's-beard

A tall, stout, biennial hawk's-beard with hairy stems and deeply lobed leaves that clasp the stems (see photo). It is much more robust than Crepis capillaris, which is usually hairless or only slightly hairy. It could be confused with Crepis vesicaria, but the inflorescence bracts (phyllaries) have stiff hairs (sometimes mixed with glandular hairs) and the achenes are not beaked. It has a scattered distribution in Britain, but it is most common in rough grassland on chalky soils in the east where it is undoudtedly native. It is rare in Wales but it has extended its range steadily westwards in coastal parts of south Wales in recent decades. More recently it has started to colonise the grassy verges along the M4 motorway and may become a more significant feature of roadside verges in West Glamorgan in the future.

Possibly neophyte in our region.