toadflax

Toadflax is the common name for several flowering plants in the genus Linaria, in the family Plantaginaceae. The best-known species is Linaria vulgaris, commonly called common toadflax or yellow toadflax. Other species referred to as toadflax include Linaria canadensis (American toadflax) and Linaria maroccana (Moroccan or dwarf snapdragon).

Toadflax plants are herbaceous perennials or annuals with slender, branching stems. Leaves are narrow, lanceolate, and usually arranged alternately along the stems. The flowers are borne in loose or terminal racemes. Each flower has a tubular corolla with two lips (bilabiate); the upper lip has two lobes and the lower lip three. Coloration is typically yellow with an orange or brown spotted throat, though cultivated forms may show other hues.

Native to Europe and western Asia, common toadflax has been widely introduced elsewhere and is now naturalized in many parts of North America and other regions. It favors sunny, open sites and can grow in disturbed soils, fields, pastures, roadsides, and waste areas.

It is a nectar source for pollinators, especially bees. Ornamentally, toadflax is grown as a cottage garden or rock garden plant, and some species are used in bedding schemes. In agricultural contexts, it is often regarded as a weed and can compete with forage crops; control measures include mechanical removal and, in some situations, herbicides applied before seed set.

Taxonomy has shifted: Linaria was formerly placed in Scrophulariaceae. The common name “toadflax” reflects the flower shape reminiscent of snapdragons.