I wondered whether this plant was named because of the difficulty in splitting it from the other members of this genus particularly F. officinalis. It is very similar to F. officinalis in colour of flower and leaf but is much more vigorous. In fact you must look at the teeth on the sepals and the length of the pedicel compared with inflorescence to see differences with the other genus members.

F. bastardii has a distinctly western distribution on mainland Britain and is found at or near the coasts of Cornwall, Wales, Lancashire and even as far north as the outer Hebrides of Lewis and Harris. Otherwise it is dotted sparsely and there isn't much in the east of England and Scotland. In Ireland however it is common all over the island particularly towards the east.

L'Erée Guernsey 16th April 2005

Added on 20th April 2005, updated 17th January 2009, updated 31st march 2010