The chickweed is a delicate, not too conspicuous plant. It is not alone in the plant world. If other wild herbs grow in your neighborhood, you have to be careful when collecting them. After all, the salad should be he althy and not poisonous.
What plants can be confused with chickweed?
Possible risks of confusion with chickweed are stitchwort, water gut and the poisonous field gauchheil. A sure distinguishing feature is the fine hairline on one side of the stem, which can be found in chickweed.
Preferred areas
You can encounter chickweed anywhere: in the wild, in the vegetable patch or even in the lawn. While it is usually allowed to thrive undisturbed in nature, it is fought on private property. What a pity. The herb surpasses many heads of lettuce with its ingredients. A chickweed salad tastes mild and delicious. So grab it next time, but first you should get to know it well. There is a risk of confusion.
The typical characteristics
- approx. 40 cm tall growth
- Plant spreads like a carpet
- Stem is soft, round and thin
- a so-called hairline is visible
- Leaves are small, max. 3 cm long
- they are oval and pointed in shape
- Flowers are simple and white
- only a few millimeters tall
- Flowering period: May to October
Other species of liverwort
Chickweed can easily be confused with other chickweeds. For example with the stitchwort. This is just as delicate and just as white-flowering as the popular chickweed. If you accidentally pick them, you don't have to worry about being poisoned. However, it is not tasty like its relative.
Similar wild herbs
There are other wild herbs that are very similar to chickweed. They do not grow in all locations where chickweed thrives. But in one or another region or place, a direct neighborhood can certainly occur. First of all, the Wassergut andthe Ackergauchheil should be mentioned.
The water gut is an edible wild plant. Confusion with it poses no danger to the uninformed collector, even if he eats it in large quantities.
It looks different with the Ackergauchheil. Inside it contains toxic saponins. It is therefore considered slightly poisonous. As a rule, consumption of this wild plant is not recommended at all. Only here and there do you hear a voice that thinks small amounts are harmless.
Sure differentiator
You can easily distinguish the chickweed from the field gauchheil during its flowering period. While the chickweed is known to bloom white, the field gauchheil adorns itself with orange flowers. Otherwise, another identifying feature can help us to distinguish the chickweed from the other lookalikes: the hairline.
This so-called hairline is formed by many no hairs. They appear close together, but only on one side of the stem. Lined up like this, they form a line that extends the entire length of the stem.
Tip
Hold a stem up to the light and you can see the fine hairline much more easily.
