Height 18 to 40 inches. The umbels of white flowers are well separated, with few flowers in each umbel. Flowers have a light-green double-rounded centre and five stamens with creamy anthers. The tiny hard fruits, each about 3 mm long, are covered in hooked spines. The leaves are fern-like, finely divided, and 2 to 3 pinnate. Tastes of aniseed.

Good photographs required showing flowers, seeds and leaves in detail. (RPR)

Disturbed ground and sandy soils.

Flowering Season: April to June.

Annual.

Widespread but local in Britain, however it may be plentiful in certain locations.

It was not listed in the Flora of Leicestershire (Primavesi & Evans 1988) or Flora of Rutland (Messenger,1971).

In the current checklist (Jeeves 2011) it is listed as 'native; disturbed ground' and as Rare.

It is listed on the current VC55 Rare Plant Register (Hall and Woodward 2022) as Locally Scarce (i.e. present in 4-10 sites) but increasing. 

Nearly all records are from the limestone soils in the east of VC55.