Chenopodium vulvaria

Chenopodium vulvaria, the stinking goosefoot or notchweed, is a foul-smelling plant or weed. The plant is a member of the genus Chenopodium, the goosefoots. Its native distribution is practically pan-European and extends eastward to Pakistan. However, it has also naturalised in Australia, California and parts of South America. It is an annual weed of bare soil and is not tolerant of competition. It is largely found where soil has been disturbed and in waste places by the sides of roads and walls. The specific epithet comes from the Latin term vulva ('external female genitalia'), in reference to the characteristic odour of the crushed leaves which resembles dry fish.