Pink-Sorrel
Pink flowered Sorrels are relatives of our native Wood-sorrel that pack the same refreshing sour taste. They’re native from South America but naturalised after being widely introduced as garden plants.
Hedgerow Type | |
Common Names | Pink-Sorrel, Sourgrass |
Scientific Name | Oxalis articulata |
Season Start | Jan |
Season End | Dec |
Leaves
Like Wood-sorrel but larger and hair-covered.
Each leaf has three heart shaped leaflets. The leaflets ‘wilt’ or close at night or if conditions are harsh.
Flowers
Pink to purple delicate flowers with five petals. Initially the petals are rolled up in a cone shape showing the whitish underside. The flowers grow in umbels with several flowers.
Habitat
Found in gardens, flower beds and open ground.
A native from South America introduced as a garden plant and now naturalised.
Possible Confusion
Other pink flowered Oxalis species in Britain include Garden Pink-sorrel (Oxalis latifolia), Pale Pink-sorrel (Oxalis incarnata) and Large-flowered Pink-sorrel (Oxalis debilis) – these are all too similar and unnecessary to distinguish as all green leaved Oxalis are edible.
Our native Wood-sorrel is a more delicate plant with white flowers that grows in woodland.
Procumbent Yellow-sorrel, Oxalis corniculata, with purple leaves (see photo on the left) is a frequent weed in urban habitat but said to hyper-accumulate copper and perhaps better avoided.
Wood-sorrels could be confused with Clover but clovers don’t have heart shaped leaves and grow in grass, and are edible in small amounts.
Taste
Sharp and sour something like apple peel and lemon, very pleasant when thirsty.
Frequency
Common in the Southern counties, especially around London, scattered elsewhere.
Collecting
The leaves, stem and flowers are edible.
It contains oxalic acid which can inhibit calcium absorption so it should be avoided in large quantities.
Medicinal Uses
Oxalis plants contain Vitamin C.
Other Facts
All members of the Oxalis family contain oxalic acid and should not be eaten in large quantities but to put it in perspective, there is oxalic acid in chocolate, coffee, pulses, spinach, rhubarb and many other foods and they don’t come with a warning.
Poisoning would require consumption of large quantities and is a remote chance but those with kidney stones or rheumatism should be careful to add these plants to their diet. It is also said that cooking partially destroys oxalic acid.
Sorrel Rust (pictured left) is a rust fungus that affects only the exotic garden varieties of Oxalis. It appears on the underside of the leaves as an orange mold and its scientific name is Puccinia oxalidis.
8 comments for Pink-Sorrel
where can i buy articulata? my mother loved them and so do i. i lost my house and they were all over my garden so i lost them too.. can you give me some suggestions please on where i can get more/ THANK YOU…
There are quite a few different plants with the second part of the name being articulata, do you know what family it is in?
Hi my Nanna made sure we brought them from our old house to the new one 30 years ago. I just found out the name oxalis articulata. Just read they are sometime called pink shamrocks.
I used to chew the stems when I was little in the garden. Thank god they are completely edible. If your in Ireland I can send you some not sure they’d travel well in the post.
Hi my Nanna made sure we brought them from our old house to the new one 30 years ago. I just found out the name oxalis articulata. Just read they are sometime called pink shamrocks.
I used to chew the stems when I was little in the garden. Thank god they are completely edible. If your in Ireland I can send you some not sure they’d travel well in the post.
I too used to eat the stalk as a child. I loved the bitter lemon taste. Took me years to find it again. An old gent had it growing in his garden and gave me a cutting. Its grown amazingly in its 2nd year. Oh the memories when i bit into the stem today.
In Oct 2022 it grew out of nowhere in a pot which is with me for over a year. Karachi, Pakistan.
Today only came to know about it’s importance. Always use to uproot and through from garden thinking it as just a wild growth. It’s in almost all my potted plants,
my guinea pigs used to eat it all but its come back since they have gone. Interestingly, they need to eat plenty Vit C which would be why they loved it.