Taxonomy
Urtica diocia the stinging nettle. © F Vincentz
Morphology
The common, or stinging, nettle is
- a herbaceous plant
- dark green leaves
- inconspicuous flowers
- abundant stinging hairs
We become aware of nettles at an early age, usually by being stung by them. Thereafter we avoid or ignore them, but our ancestors used nettles as food, for fibre, and in medicine, and some of these uses are being revived today.