Wood sorrel flower froth
Photos: Arne Ader
Translation: Liis
Wood sorrel
Wood sorrel Harilik jänesekapsas Oxalis acetosella
The forest floor in forests where conifers dominate is covered with the flowers of the wood-sorrel now. “Wood sorrel spruce forest” is a designation used to describe some forests. The Estonian name jänesekapsas means “rabbit cabbage”. Other flowering plants that would flower in complete shade like the wood sorrel are not easy to find. To an attentive viewer the flowers are a true feast for the eye; they can be coloured as well as simply white. In fact the plant flowers all through the summer, but in secret, because the later flowers will not open, but seeds are formed regardless.
There is probably no-one who has not tasted the amazingly thin (only a few cell layers thick), somewhat acid leaves. These delicate leaves have by the way survived winter – nature amazes with its miraculous powers. In the evening the wood sorrel leaves fold up, similarly the plant protects itself against heavy rain and during droughts and in wintertime.
The wood sorrel lacks an above-ground stem, what comes between your fingers on picking is the leaf stalk; the stem of the plant is hidden underground.
Wood sorrel spruce forest
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