Asteraceae - the daisies

A huge plant family containing many familiar garden plants and 'weeds'. Also known as the compositae in other plant name systems because of the composite flowers. The Daisy, Bellis perennis, is an obvious composite but so too is the Dandelion, Taraxacum officinale, and the Creeping Thistle, Cirsium arvense.

Senecio - the ragworts and groundsels

’Wait a minute, ragwort, groundsel - this bloke is mad.’ I hear you say but there are some very garden worthy plants within the genus.

A word of caution though with the ragworts - much media attention is given to the alkaloid poisons that are present within ragworts. Although there are no documented cases of human poisoning through skin contact (as far as I’m aware) it is always advisable to wear gloves when working around the plants. That said I can vouch for the fact that I’m still alive!