# Annual mercury (*Mercurialis annua*)

Annual mercury is a green plant that grows in many places. It has soft leaves and can be found in gardens and fields, making it easy to spot during nature walks.

- **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 2/5 · Low
- **Habitat:** Urban areas

![Annual mercury](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Mercurialis_annua_2005.07.11_11.37.49-p7110221.jpg&width=800)

Photo: Michael Becker, CC BY-SA 3.0 · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mercurialis_annua_2005.07.11_11.37.49-p7110221.jpg)

## Appearance

The Annual mercury is a bushy plant with opposite, bright to dark green leaves that are often serrated. Its tiny, inconspicuous green flowers grow in clusters at the leaf axils, making it look quite ordinary compared to showier plants.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Plantae
- **Phylum:** Tracheophyta
- **Class:** Magnoliopsida
- **Order:** Malpighiales
- **Family:** Euphorbiaceae
- **Genus:** Mercurialis

## Interesting facts

- Annual mercury is often the very first plant to sprout in freshly dug garden soil!
- Despite being poisonous, it was once used for medicine by ancient people!
- Eating this plant can make milk from cows taste bitter or even toxic!
- Its scientific name 'Mercurialis' might hint at its quick, mercurial spread!

## Special abilities

- **Sexual Separation Power:** Annual mercury has male and female flowers on separate plants, ensuring genetic diversity for stronger offspring.
- **Rapid Growth Burst:** It can grow and produce seeds very quickly, helping it colonize new, disturbed areas fast for survival.
- **Wind Whisperer:** Its tiny flowers release pollen into the wind, letting it spread far without needing insect help to reproduce.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 10-60 cm
- **Spread:** 15-40 cm
- **Bloom Season:** Summer-fall
- **Edible:** No
- **Toxicity:** Moderate
- **Lifecycle:** Annual
- **Pollination Method:** Wind

## Ecological connections

- **Depends on:** Humans (*Homo sapiens*) — Thrives in disturbed soil created by human activity.
- **Eats:** [House Sparrow](https://www.snappit.app/explore/house-sparrow) (*Passer domesticus*) — These birds may consume its small seeds.
- **Shelter:** [Ground Beetle](https://www.snappit.app/explore/ground-beetle) (*Carabus nemoralis*) — Its bushy growth provides shelter for small insects.

## Traits

- [Flowering](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/flowering): Flowering plants are any plants that produce flowers as part of their reproductive cycle.
- [Medicinal](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/medicinal): Medicinal plants possess chemical compounds that can be used for therapeutic purposes to treat illnesses or maintain health.
- [Edible](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/edible): Edible plants are those parts of a plant that are considered safe for human consumption.
- [Rapid Growing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/rapid-growing): Rapid growing plants exhibit accelerated growth rates, quickly increasing in size and biomass within a short period.
- [Urban Friendly](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/urban-friendly): This habitat trait indicates species that can coexist with humans in urban and suburban environments, utilizing man-made structures and green spaces.

## Collections

- [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/plants)

## Safety

**Danger:** 2/5 · Low

Do not touch or eat plants without asking an adult first.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Annual mercury?

Start with the whole plant, then compare leaf arrangement, leaf edges, stems and any flowers or fruit. Opposite leaves grow in pairs; alternate leaves come one at a time along the stem. These details tell you far more together than a single green leaf does. Plant Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Annual mercury?

10-60 cm

### How wide does Annual mercury spread?

15-40 cm

### When does Annual mercury bloom?

Summer-fall

### Is Annual mercury edible?

No

### Is Annual mercury toxic?

Moderate

### What is Annual mercury's lifecycle?

Annual

### How is Annual mercury pollinated?

Wind

## Where to spot

- [Shoreline Park](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/shoreline-park) — California, US · Park

## More Plants

- [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*)
- [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*)
- [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*)
- [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*)

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Source: [Annual mercury: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/annual-mercury)