Linaria vulgaris Mill.

Butter and Eggs; Yellow Toadflax; Wild Snapdragon

Herb

Perennial

Vascular

Butter and Eggs is an introduced herbaceous perennial in the Plantain family (Plantaginaceae). It is native to Europe, but was introduced into North America as early as the 1600’s as an ornamental, dye, and medicinal plant. In Alabama it occurs most frequently in the northern half of the state. Habitats include roadsides, fields and pastures, around old home sites, and in disturbed areas. Butter and Eggs is a perennial with a tap root and reproduces vegetatively by adventitious buds produced along the roots. Stems are erect or suberect, glabrous, green in color, and up to 1 meter in height. Leaves are alternate, sessile, linear to linear-lanceolate in outline, with entire margins. Flowers are produced in terminal 5-50 flowered racemes. Each flower has a 5-lobed green calyx. The corolla is two-lipped, spurred, and bright yellow or cream in color with the lower lip orangish. The fruit is a globular or ovoid capsule. The sed are bark brown or black in color with a prominent encircling wing. Butter and Eggs is considered an invasive species in many states. Each plant is capable of producing up to thirty thousand winged seeds each year, and once established it is difficult to remove. Biological control using two weevil species (Gymnetron antirrhini and Mecinus janthinu), and two moths (Calophasia lunula and Eteobalea serratella) has been effective in some areas.—A. Diamond.

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Not Native

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