Spotting flowers growing wild in the South East
Flora on the beach On the third and final day I walked West along the seafront to Winchelsea Beach and back. Most of the flora I spotted has already been covered in my previous two posts. I had been very lucky with the weather all week, although the wind was quite strong for the entire…
Flora of Rye Harbour in May I spent three whole days at Sussex Wildlife Trust Rye Harbour Nature Reserve in East Sussex this May. On Day 1 I wandered the reserve with my friend Mercy and did a spot of bird watching in the hides (not bird photography though, I prefer targets that don’t move!)….
Rye Harbour Nature Reserve Flowers On the second day of my visit to Rye Harbour Nature Reserve in Sussex, I walked out to Camber Castle and the reedbeds at Castle Water. Around the beach Of course there was plenty of sea kale, as seen in the pic above! Herb robert is one of my favourite…
Along the river Test in Hampshire Mike and I had a lovely weekend away in our campervan in Stockbridge in Hampshire in May. We had the express purpose of walking along the river Test. Being from the chalky South Downs, we were attracted to a chalk stream! We loved being able to park our van…
Local floral highlights of May 2021 Flowers of very early May Call me a cheat but I couldn’t resist including these two lovelies from the 30th April! Both the English bluebells Hyacinthoides non-scripta and Garlic mustard Alliaria petiolata were looking so lush and abundant! In bloom in early May It was about this time that…
A summer of orchids I’m so glad I joined Seaford Natural History Society recently because they really helped me with my orchid spotting this year! Back in May I met Polly who was so helpful showing me the Early purple orchids, Orchis mascula on Seaford Head. She told me about the swathes of Green-winged orchids,…
Abundant spring country lanes The county of Sussex is a warren of country lanes, sunny banks and hedgerows. We visit the Battle area regularly and are often surprised by the profusion of blooms by the wayside. Even away from the wildlife verges, the flowers can be glorious in the spring. I took all these photos…
Out and about in fields with my smartphone I haven’t written a post since April this year. This is not because I’ve lost interest in wildflowers but because, as happens every year, I’ve been too busy spotting them to write about them! Generally I tend to be out and about in spring and summer, then…
Viola riviniana around Sussex in early April In the first five days of April I have spotted Common dog violet, Viola riviniana, in three places in Sussex. This might indicate the relaxing of lockdown as much as anything else! This violet is more delicate looking than the often earlier Sweet violet. It is usually found…
Spring plants in bloom Staying local this March, I have been on lots of short walks in and around Seaford. I looked back on my blog post from this time last year and noticed that a few things I’d spotted then aren’t yet in flower. Plants I thought I might see but haven’t spotted in…