Gorse
Gorse
Shrub
A spiny, evergreen heathland shrub whose coconut-scented yellow flowers appear in almost every month of the year, and whose seed pods burst open with an audible crack.
💡 Fun Facts
- Gorse flowers in almost every month of the year — there is an old saying that 'when gorse is out of bloom, kissing is out of fashion'.
- Its bright yellow flowers smell just like coconut on a warm day.
- Instead of soft leaves it has thousands of sharp green spines, making it a spiky fortress for nesting birds.
📅 Through the Year
- Flowering:January to December
- Fruiting:May to August
Name Story
Ulex europaeus
means “the European gorse”
likely meaningThe genus name Ulex is an old name no one can decode — its original meaning is lost, so only 'European' can truly be translated.
What does its name mean?
- Ulex — an old name of lost meaningLatin — first used by Pliny for a different, possibly rosemary-like shrub
- europaeus — European, of EuropeLatin Europa
Only half of gorse's Latin name can be unlocked: europaeus means 'European', and this spiny, coconut-scented shrub does blaze golden across heaths and commons right across Europe, including Britain. The first word, Ulex, is an old borrowed name whose meaning is lost.