Linaria vulgaris Mill.
Butter And Eggs
Common toadflax is a native British perennial that spreads by creeping roots to form upright, blue-green stems clothed in slender, almost grass-like leaves. Its flowers are the real signature: dense spikes of pale yellow blooms shaped like miniature snapdragons, each with a deep orange swelling on the lower lip and a long backward-pointing spur.
About
Common toadflax is a native British perennial that spreads by creeping roots to form upright, blue-green stems clothed in slender, almost grass-like leaves. Its flowers are the real signature: dense spikes of pale yellow blooms shaped like miniature snapdragons, each with a deep orange swelling on the lower lip and a long backward-pointing spur. This two-tone colouring earns it the old country name "butter-and-eggs". It typically flowers from midsummer through into autumn.
Look for it on roadside verges, railway banks, rough grassland, hedge bottoms and other sunny, disturbed places, where it favours free-draining soils and plenty of light. The spurred flowers hold their nectar deep inside, so they are worked mainly by long-tongued bumblebees strong enough to prise the lips apart, making it a useful late-season nectar source. Its tall, colourful spikes suit informal borders, wildlife plantings and perennial meadow mixes on poorer ground.
Also known as
Common Toadflax · Common toadflax · Flaxweed · Greater Butter-and-eggs · Jacob's Ladder · Ramsted · Toadflax · Wild Snapdragon · Yellow Toadflax · butter-and-eggs
Synonyms
Antirrhinum vulgaris · Linaria hendersonii · Linaria perrieri · Linaria vulgaris monspessulana · Linaria vulgaris sinensis · Linaria vulgaris vulgaris
In our seed mixes
- BFS 11 – Coastal Meadow Grassland Seed Mix
- BFS 12 – Green Roof Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS 14 – Brownfield Site Wildflower Mix (Open Mosaic Habitat on Previously Developed Land) – 80% Flora
- BFS11(F)- Coastal Meadow 100% Wildflower Meadow Mix
- BFS12(F) – Greenroof 100% Wildflower Seed Mix
- BFS14(F) – Brownfield Site 100% Wildflower Mix
- UM13 – Treasure Trove Wildflower Mix
- UM6 – Golden Summer Perennial Wildflower Mix
Beta — under active development. This catalogue is still being built and accuracy-checked. The information here (including plant identifications, British native status, soil and sun/shade preferences) is provided in good faith for general guidance only and may contain errors or omissions. It must not be relied upon on its own — please confirm details with us before making planting, specification, foraging or purchasing decisions, and never eat or medicinally use any plant based on this catalogue alone, as some species are toxic. To the extent permitted by law, Phoenix Amenity Supplies accepts no liability for any loss arising from use of this information.