common wood sorrel

plant

Also known as: Oxalis acetosella

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Last updated

June 24, 2026

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Wood sorrel refers to several flowering plants in the genus Oxalis (family Oxalidaceae). The common wood sorrel (O. acetosella) is a small, stemless plant with clover-like leaves and white, purple-veined flowers. Its fruit is a capsule, and its seeds are ejected by an elastic curling of their fleshy coat. The leaflets fold and droop at night. In North America, mountain wood sorrel (O. montana) is common. The name "wood sorrel" is sometimes mistakenly applied to plants like sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella). The genus name Oxalis comes from the Greek word for "acid," referring to the plants' sour taste due to oxalic acid.1234

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shamrock
Of commercial importance is wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) of the family Oxalidaceae. The plant is found in Ireland and elsewhere in Europe and is commonly sold as a potted plant for St. Patrick’s Day. Black medic (Medicago lupulina) is also sometimes referred to as a shamrock.
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Of commercial importance is wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) of the family Oxalidaceae. The plant is found in Ireland and elsewhere in Europe and is commonly sold as a potted plant for St. Patrick’s Day. Black medic (Medicago lupulina) is also sometimes referred to as a shamrock.
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Oxalis
The common wood sorrel (O. acetosella) of eastern North America and Great Britain is a small, stemless plant with cloverlike three-parted leaves. The leaves arise from a creeping, scaly rootstock, and the flowers are borne singly on a stalk that arises from the leaf axil. The…
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The common wood sorrel (O. acetosella) of eastern North America and Great Britain is a small, stemless plant with cloverlike three-parted leaves. The leaves arise from a creeping, scaly rootstock, and the flowers are borne singly on a stalk that arises from the leaf axil. The…
Read More