Knautia arvensis
Tracheophyta
›Magnoliopsida›Dipsacaceae›Knautia›Knautia arvensis
Ecology
A perennial herb of calcareous and neutral grassland on well-drained, especially basic soils. It is found in chalk and limestone grassland, in rough pasture, open hedgerows and wood borders, and as a colonist on roadside verges, railway embankments and grassy waste ground. It is also a locally common weed of cultivation, especially in field-borders on the chalk. 0-365 m (Derbys.).
Status
Native
Trends
K. arvensis was mapped as `all records` in the 1962 Atlas. Analysis of the database reveals that most of the losses have occurred since 1950. It is included in some wild-flower seed mixtures.
World Distribution
Eurosiberian Temperate element; widely naturalised outside its native range.
© P. Shannon
Cherry Hinton, vc29
© P. Shannon
Mundesley, vc27
© P. Shannon
Broad Habitats
Light (Ellenberg): 7
Moisture (Ellenberg): 3
Reaction (Ellenberg): 8
Nitrogen (Ellenberg): 4
Salt Tolerance (Ellenberg): 0
January Mean Temperature (Celsius): 3.8
July Mean Temperature (Celsius): 15.2
Annual Precipitation (mm): 919
Height (cm): 100
Perennation - primary
Perennial
Life Form - primary
Hemicryptophyte
Woodiness
Herbaceous
Clonality - primary
Little or no vegetative spread
Count of 10km squares in Great Britain: 1707
Count of 10km squares in Ireland: 478
Count of 10km squares in the Channel Isles: 4
Atlas Change Index: -0.88
Weighted Changed Factor: -19
Weighted Change Factor Confidence (90%)
15
JNCC Designations
NHMSYS0000460024