Roman chamomile

Chamaemelum nobile, Roman chamomile, is a low, mat-forming perennial herb of the daisy family (Asteraceae) with creeping, often rooting stems and ascending flowering shoots that lift the heads 20–30 cm above the ground. The bright green leaves are alternate, bipinnately or tripinnately divided into very fine, almost thread-like segments, giving the foliage a feathery appearance. Solitary daisy-like flowerheads 18–25 mm across appear from June to August, with a domed yellow disc of tubular florets surrounded by silvery-white ray florets; in cultivation a double-flowered form with all-white heads is widely grown. The whole plant releases a sweet, apple-like fragrance when crushed. Native to western Europe and northwest Africa, it grows wild on sandy commons, lawns and short turf, and is now widely cultivated and naturalised across Europe, North America and South America.