Ranunculus ficaria - Lesser Celandine - (Ranunculaceae)

Lesser Celandine is a very common and widespread wildflower in the UK and Ireland.

When people talk about celandines, it is to the Lesser Celandine that they are generally referring. (Despite its name, the Greater Celandine is not a close relative and it flowers much later in the year.) It always cheers us up tremendously to see the first displays of Lesser Celandines on bright sunny days - often as early as February. It means that spring is definitely on the way.

Lesser Celandines

This glossy spring flower, a member of the buttercup family, blooms from March to early June, and it has a preference for the edges of damp woodland, hedgerows and riverbanks.

Close up of Lesser Celandine flowers

The pictures on this page were taken in West Wales in early March.