Stinging Nettles - introduced (Urtica species)

There is a native and an introduced species.

Stinging Nettle - introduced (*Urtica urens)

Common.

Family: Urticaceae (Nettle family).

Cosmopolitan.

Occurrence: Stinging Nettle is a common weed of waste areas and overgrazed farmland.

Identification:

• Stinging Nettle is an erect herb (i.e. a non-woody plant)
• it is covered with small stiff stinging hairs
• the flowers are small and white in colour
• the flower clusters have both male and female flowers
• the leaves are ovate and have serrated margins.

Stinging Nettle is an annual. Stinging Nettles are sometimes used as a vegetable. Cooking is said to render the stings harmless.

Scrub Nettle - native (Urtica incisa)

Uncommon.

Scrub Nettle is a perennial. It has toothed, lanceolate leaves (i.e. the leaves are longer than wide, and taper towards the tip) which are up to 10 cm long. The male and female flowers are on separate plants (or sometimes, on separate flower clusters on the one plant). It grows to a small shrub.

Photo 1 left: Stinging Nettle. Vaughan Springs. 2: Stinging Nettle. Frederick St, Castlemaine. 3: Stinging Nettle showing the small white flowers and toothed leaves. The leaves are about as wide as long. Ballarat.

4. Scrub Nettle. Boole Lagoon. It is a shrub, and has leaves which are longer than wide. 5: The native Scrub Nettle. Tower Hill.