Constant species

Anagallis arvensis, Bilderdykia convolvulus, Polygonum aviculare, Veronica persica.

Rare species

Ajuga chamaepitys, Scandix pecten-veneris.

Physiognomy

The Kickxietum spuriae comprises annual vegetation that is usually dominated by smaller ephemerals like Anagallis arvensis, Veronica persica and Polygonum aviculare with twining trails of Bilderdykia convovlulus. However, by mid- to late summer, the most distinctive feature in many stands is the presence of one or other, often both, of Kickxia elatine and K. spuria, their downy shoots spreading among the cereal stubble that usually forms the habitat of this vegetation. Euphorbia exigua is another summer annual that occurs more or less frequently throughout.

Less distinctive but still common through the community as a whole are Poa annua, Matricaria perforata, Sonchus asper, Myosotis arvensis, Elymus repens and Plantago major, with Veronica polita, Lapsana communis, Papaver rhoeas, Cirsium arvense, Galium aparine and Lolium perenne occasional.

Sub-communities

Stellaria media-Convolvulus arvensis sub-community: Kickxietum spuriae Kruseman & Vlieger 1939; unassigned aufnahmen sensu Silverside 1977. The two Kickxia spp. and E. exigua are frequent here but are accompanied by less distinctive weeds like Stellaria media and tangles of Convolvulus arvensis. The grasses Avena fatua, Alopecurus myosuroides and Agrostis stolonifera are quite common, the inflorescences of the first two often growing up among the cereal crop. Aethusa cynapium, Chenopodium album and Anthemis cotula are occasional.