Fox-and-cubs |
As some of you regular readers may know, I took part in an ongoing wild flower count one summer term, back in the 1960s, when I was at junior school in Kent, UK. Each pupil had to find as many species of wild flowers as possible. We recorded our finds after every weekend, and attempted to learn the names of ten new species for a test each Friday.
During the course of the term, I noted a total of 144 species, including a few garden escapes. Perhaps inevitably, we picked one or two Daisies and Buttercups along the way, but we soon learned that some plants were rare, and that e.g. the sight alone of an Orchid was more than sufficient for our purposes.
I thought it would be interesting to note the wild flowers I see this year. I used The Concise British Flora in Colour by W. Keble Martin when I was at school. Once again, I will be happy to include any plant featured in that book.
The list to date is as follows (and - just to underline this - I have no intention of picking these flowers!) ... I shall add flower names as I come across new species. I don't intend to post a photo of every 'find', but I will add the occasional picture, and I plan to include livelinks when there is a photo available.
- Snowdrop (South Wales, location A) - January
- Primrose (ditto) - January
- Cowslip (ditto) - April
- Daisy (South Wales, location P) - 26 February
- Dandelion (garden!) - April
- Wild Garlic (South Wales, location A) - April
- Bluebell (ditto) - April
- Wood Anemone (ditto) - April
- Wood Sorrel (ditto) - April
- Ivy-leaved Toadflax (ditto) - April
- Herb Robert (ditto) - April
- Pink Campion (ditto) - April
- Solomon's Seal (ditto) - April
- Cow Parsley (lanes, South Wales) - April
- Wild Arum (South Wales, location A) - April
- Cuckoo Flower | Lady's Smock | Cardamine pratensis (South Wales, location W) - April
- Coltsfoot (South Wales, location A) - April
- Speedwell (South Wales, location A) - April
- Violet (South Wales, location A) - April
- Poppy (South Wales, location A) - April
- Dog's Mercury (South Wales, location A) - April
- Snakeshead Fritillary (South Wales, location A) - April
- Horsetail (South Wales, location W) - 21 April
- Lesser Celandine (Yorkshire, location M) - April
- Wild Wallflower (Yorkshire, location S) - April
- Marsh Marigold (South Wales, location A, D1) - April
- Early Purple Vetch (South Wales, location A, D1) - April
- Gorse (South Wales, Gower lanes; Yorkshire coast) - April
- Yellow Pimpernel (South Wales, location D1) - 25 April
- Buttercup (South Wales, location D1) - 25 April
- Early Purple Orchid (South Wales, location A) - April
- Yellow Flag (South Wales, location W) - 31 April
- Groundsel (South East Wales, location C) - 2 May
- Dove's Foot Cranesbill (South East Wales, location C) - 2 May
- Red Valerian (South East Wales, location C) - 2 May
- Yellow Trefoil (South East Wales, location C) - 2 May
- Ramping Fumitory | Fumaria capreolata (South East Wales, location C) - 2 May
- Red Clover (South Wales, location A) - May
- White Clover (South Wales, location A) - May
- Wild Strawberry (South Wales, location A) - May
- Chickweed (South Wales, location A) - May
- Goosegrass (South Wales, location A) - May
- Bugle (South Wales, location A) - May
- Common Cinquefoil (South Wales, location A) - May
- Early Wintercress (South Wales, location A) - May
- Ox Eye Daisy (South Wales, M4) - May
- Sorrel (Worcester) - May
- Pink Valerian (Worcester) - May
- White Valerian (Worcester) - May
- Dog Rose (Worcester) - May ......................................................... First Fifty!
- Common Comfrey | Symphytum officinale (Worcester) - May
- Field Bindweed | Convolvulus arvensis (Worcester) - May
- Shepherd's Purse (Peterborough) - May
- White Dead Nettle | Lamium album (Peterborough) - May
- Purple Dead Nettle (Peterborough) - May
- Alkanet (Herefordhshire, location C) - May
- Yellow Cinquefoil (Herefordshire, location C) - May
- Welsh Poppy | Meconopsis cambrica (South Wales, location A) - May
- Teasel (South Wales, location W) - 19 May 2011
- Purple Loosestrife (South Wales, location W) - 19 May 2011
- Woody Nightshade (South Wales, location W) - 19 May 2011
- Ragwort (Worcester) - May 2011
- Bird's Foot Trefoil (South Wales, location T) - 19 May 2011
- Common Vetch (South Wales, location W) - 19 May 2011
- Ragged Robin (South Wales, location W) - 19 May 2011
- Blackberry (South Wales, location D2) - 22 May 2011
- Burdock (South Wales, location D2) - 22 May 2011
- Common Hemp Nettle (South Wales, location D1) - 22 May 2011
- Periwinkle (South Wales, location W) - 24 May 2011
- Lesser Stitchwort (South Wales, location W) - 24 May 2011
- Sea Campion (South Wales, location T) - 28 May 2011
- Fox-and-cubs | Hawkweed (South Wales, location A) - 28 May 2011 .... Halfway to previous total
- Purple Toadflax (South Wales, location J) - 29 May 2011
- Scarlet Pimpernel (South Wales, location A) - 20 June 2011
Have you spotted any interesting wild flowers in your neck of the woods recently?
I love orange hawkweed, i don't know why, but I had never heard it called fox and cubs before
ReplyDelete