Water-pepper - Persicaria hydropiper

Medium to tall, erect hairless plant with a burning peppery taste. Leaves narrow-lanceolate, pointed, scarcely stalked. Flowers in a lax slender spike, often drooping especially at the tip, pinkish or greenish white.

Persicaria minor

Peppery taste is characteristic; hairs on face of stipules (not terminal cilia) fused to to stipule for >3/4 of length

Nibble clean leaf to detect peppery taste!  Photo of stipules is needed.  

Damp places, wet meadows, water margins, woodland rides etc.

June to September.

Annual.

Widespread and quite frequent in Britain in suitable habitats.

Locally frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 166 of the 617 tetrads.

In the current Checklist (Jeeves, 2011) it is listed as Native, Locally Frequent