Water loving wildflowers of Lechlade
Mike and I stayed in a moored narrowboat for the weekend in Lechlade which is on the edge of the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire. We went for some lovely walks along the river Thames and visited nearby Buscot Park.
![mike breakfast river thames lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/mike-breakfast-river-thames-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
July riverside flora
Who needs net curtains when you’ve got Meadowsweet and Willowherb alongside?
Meadowsweet – Filipendula ulmaria
![narrowboat meadowsweet willowherb lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/narrowboat-meadowsweet-willowherb-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Great Willowherb – Epilobium hirsutum
![great willowherb narrowboat epilobium hirsutum lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/great-willowherb-narrowboat-epilobium-hirsutum-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Nearby in the marina:
Purple Loosestrife – Lythrum salicaria
![purple loosestrife river lythrum salicaria lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/purple-loosestrife-river-lythrum-salicaria-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
![purple loosestrife detail lythrum salicaria lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/purple-loosestrife-detail-lythrum-salicaria-lechlade-jul-2022-600x600.jpg)
Bristly Oxtongue – Picris echioides
I was familiar with this, having learnt it recently with Seaford Natural History Society who had been recording selected wildflowers over the summer. It has distinctive blistered foliage.
![bristly oxtongue flower picris echioides lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/bristly-oxtongue-flower-picris-echioides-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Wild Angelica – Angelica sylvestris
This seems the most likely candidate out of all the white umbellifers, having looked at its foliage.
![poss wild angelica flowers angelica sylvestris lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/poss-wild-angelica-flowers-angelica-sylvestris-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Common Centaury – Centaurium erythraea
We visited Buscot Park for the pre-Raphaelite art rather than the wildflowers, but did spot this Centaury in the grounds – I haven’t seen the white form before.
![common centaury white pink centaurium erythraea buscot park jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/common-centaury-white-pink-centaurium-erythraea-buscot-park-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Walking along the river again near Lechlade:
Marsh Woundwort – Stachys palustris
This Woundwort was new to me.
![Marsh woundwort flower stachys palustris lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Marsh-woundwort-flower-stachys-palustris-lechlade-jul-2022-450x600.jpg)
Water Figwort – Scrophularia auriculata
I hadn’t seen this before either – apparently the flowers are shaped like an ear, hence the name but unfortunately I couldn’t get close enough for a good flower pic.
![water figwort flower scrophularia auriculata or aquatica lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/water-figwort-flower-scrophularia-auriculata-or-aquatica-lechlade-jul-2022-600x600.jpg)
Water Forget-me-not – Myosotis scorpioides
![water forget-me-not myosotis scorpioides lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/water-forget-me-not-myosotis-scorpioides-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Rush – Juncus
With loads of flowering Willowherb on the opposite rive bank. I haven’t started to learn about the I.D. of Rushes yet.
![rush juncus river lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/rush-juncus-river-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Greater Burdock – Arctium lappa
This is another plant that I’d recently learnt. Locally we have a lot of Lesser Burdock Arctium minus which has much shorter flower stems.
![Greater burdock plant arctium lappa lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Greater-burdock-plant-arctium-lappa-lechlade-jul-2022-450x600.jpg)
Indian Balsam – Impatiens glandulifera
Invasive Balsam at least has the benefit that it’s enjoyed by the bees, which I’ve noticed before.
![](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Indian-balsam-flower-impatiens-glandulifera-lechlade-jul-2022-scaled-e1679834560739-600x450.jpg)
Hawks-beard – Crepis
I’ve been doing this long enough to know that yellow flowers like this are hard to separate, so I’m not going to go further than the Genus Crepis. This one caught my eye as it was so large and blousy.
![hawks-beard crepis flower lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/hawks-beard-crepis-flower-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Wild Teasel – Dipsacus fullonum
This was another plant the bees seemed to like a lot.
![wild teasel flower dipsacus fullonum lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/wild-teasel-flower-dipsacus-fullonum-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Common Fleabane – Pulicaria dysenterica
![common fleabane flowers pulicaria dysenterica lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/common-fleabane-flowers-pulicaria-dysenterica-lechlade-jul-2022-600x600.jpg)
Scentless Mayweed – Tripleurospermum inodorum
![scentless mayweed tripleurospermum inodorum lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/scentless-mayweed-tripleurospermum-inodorum-lechlade-jul-2022-600x338.jpg)
Carrot family
This was growing in long grass on the riverbank and I thought it might be some sort of Pignut but the leaves didn’t look right. It wasn’t substantial enough to be Cow Parsley.
![carrot family flowers lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/carrot-family-flowers-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Water Mint – Mentha aquatica
![water mint flower mentha aquatica lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/water-mint-flower-mentha-aquatica-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Common Comfrey – Symphytum officinale
![Common comfrey flower symphytum officinale lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Common-comfrey-flower-symphytum-officinale-lechlade-jul-2022-600x600.jpg)
Silverweed – Potentilla anserina
![Silverweed potentilla anserina Lechlade Jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Silverweed-potentilla-anserina-Lechlade-Jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
False Oat – Arrhenatherum elatius
Although I don’t really do grasses, I was more confident about identifying this one as it was pointed out to me on a walk a few days previously.
![false oat Arrhenatherum elatius lechlade jul 2022](https://photographingwildflowers.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/false-oat-Arrhenatherum-elatius-lechlade-jul-2022-600x450.jpg)
Previous river walks include along the River Test in Hampshire and the Stour in Kent.
I’ve also walked along the Thames nearer to London in Surrey.