Wild radish

The wild radish (Raphanus raphanistrum) is not a “tame” radish gone wild, nor is it the plant from which the garden radish was developed, although the two are related. It is an annual plant that is regarded as an unwelcome weed by arable farmers who have their own names for it – in northern England it is called “runch” whereas southern farmers call it “cadlock”.

The flowers of wild radish vary in colour. In north and west England they are lilac with dark veins on the petals whereas in the Isle of Man, northern Scotland and the Hebrides they are yellow. A white-flowered variety is found in south and east England where the plant is known as “white charlock”. The plant is common in many other parts of the world and there are other colour varieties in various places.

The wild radish grows to around 24 inches (60 centimetres) in height. The stems are rough and hairy, bearing leaves that comprise up to four widely-spaced pairs of leaflets.

The flowers, coloured as mentioned above, are visible from May to September. They grow in small clusters, each having four spaced-out petals.

The seed pods are unusual in that they are long and thin (up to two inches or five centimetres) but each of the eight or so seeds has its own “bump” so that the pod resembles a string of beads. As the seeds ripen they fall off in turn, each with its portion of the pod.

© John Welford