Butterworts
(Pinguicula vulgaris)
Common butterwort has a rosette of yellow-green and sticky leaves that appear flat to the ground and are shaped like a star. It produces around two or three tall upright flower stalks which bear small, deep purple flowers.
It is an insectivorous plant. Its leaves excrete a sticky fluid that attracts unsuspecting insects. Once the insect is trapped, the leaves slowly curl around the insect and digest it. The acidic bogs, damp heaths and moorland that the common butterwort lives in do not provide it with enough nutrients, so it has evolved this insectivorous way of life to supplement its diet.
Butterworts grow on the moorland and heath up towards Dumgoyne.
Fascinating fact:
It takes its name from its yellow, slightly greasy feeling leaves (‘butter’) combined with its uses in folk medicine and as an aid to curdle milk to give cheese and yoghurt (‘wort’).
The flowers of butterworts are held far above the rest of the plant by long stalks, in order to reduce the probability of trapping potential pollinators on its leaves.
Myths and legend
On the island of Colonsay, in the Inner Hebrides, butterwort was considered to have magical properties. If you picked it, you would be protected from witches. If your cows ate it, they would be protected from elf arrows.
Did you know
People used to believe that rubbing the juices of the leaves of common butterwort into the udders of cows would help heal sore udders and protect the cows against giving bad milk and butter.