“Modestly cheerful” is how Richard Mabey describes this tiny native plant in Flora Britannica. The white flowers are clustered on leafless stems, rising a few inches above a small basal rosette of leaves. Photo 2 gives an idea of scale. The flowers have 4 deeply divided petals.
Verna means Spring plant and it is one of the very earliest to great the new year. The “grass” part of the name just means “plant” whilst Whitlow refers to a painful infection around the nail bed. According to Gerard’s Herbal of 1597 “it hath been taken to heal the disease of the nails called a whitlow whereof it took its name” There doesn’t seem to be much historical references to it being used in this way. Perhaps “the doctrine of signatures” (the belief a plant’s features are a sign from God as to its healing properties) attributed meaning to the shape of the leaves which can have a forward pointing “tooth” on one side.
Don’t miss this little plant which is already beginning to go to seed. The challenge is to find it! Look for it on walls or fairly bare waste ground as being small it doesn’t like much competition. I found these on the verge just to the left of the Tower Close sign.
This link has some much better photos Common Whitlowgrass photos