Red Sorrel (Sheep Sorrel, Sourgrass, Indian Cane)

Scientific Name - Rumex acetosella L.
Family - Polygonaceae

Perennial with smooth, erect four-sided stems. Produces large yellow taproot and spreads from sprouts from numerous rhizomes and roots. Leaves mostly basal, distinctively arrow- or lance- shaped. Flowers borne in clusters at end of stems. Flowers green to red at maturity. Reproduces by seed and rhizomes. Found in the continental United States, except Florida, and in Alaska, and Hawaii. Also found in Central and South America, Australia, Indonesia, Iceland, Africa, and Asia. Native to Europe. Heartwing sorrel, a winter annual, is similar, but lacks rhizomes and produces larger red masses of flowers and fruits at maturity and only reproduces by seed.