Fiddle Dock - introduced (*Rumex pulcher)

Family: Polygonaceae (Polygonum family).

Native of Europe and Asia.

Occurrence: Widespread weed, on farmland, roadsides and weedy areas.

• the leaves at the base of the plant are often narrow at the middle (fiddle-shaped)
• it is much-branched
• the flowers are in clusters along the stems, with a small leaf at the base of each flower cluster
• the valves which surround the seed are triangular with 3 to 5 narrow, rigid teeth on each side, and a large oval tubercule (a wart-likeswelling) at the base
• the fruit taper to a rounded point, compared to the acute point of R. brownii and R. dumosus.

Fiddle Dock is a noxious weed in parts of Western Australia.

Similar plants: Slender Dock (a native dock) is less branched, and the flowering stems are leafless. Fiddle Dock can be distinguished from other introduced docks by the shape of the basal leaves, the leafy flowering stems, and the shape of the fruiting valves.

Photos 1: A branch of Fiddle Dock. The flowers are in clusters of about 10, and have a narrow leaf at the base of the flower stalk. The tubercules (oval swellings) on the fruit are a prominent feature. The valves of Fiddle Dock are triangular, with about 5 narrow teeth on each side.
2: Fiddle Dock is much branched. Pipers Creek.