We went on an Orchid hunt in May! Mike and I had a rare day free on a weekend so I persuaded him to drive us on an Orchid spotting trip. I had a keen eye on the date and the weather and was well aware it was peak season! There were two spots in…
Tag: orchid
Orchids in France in June
In June we camped by the river Seine We took Ethel the campervan on her first overseas trip with us to France (she went surfing to Spain before we knew her!). We wanted to start off gently, so took her on the ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe, then a short 90 minute drive to a…
Wildflower diary 2024 – Early Summer
Wildflower spotting in early summer 2024 In my previous post I listed a few flowers I’d spotted while completing the Wildflower Society diary earlier this year. Since then I’ve been out and about in Seaford, especially to the Last Meadow which is beautiful at this time of year. I’ve pootled down the road to Tidemills…
Counting Orchids in Cradle Valley Seaford in July
Burnt-tip Orchids in Sussex Neotinia ustulata grows in a few places locally The Orchid is on the Red List but locally frequent because it likes the short chalk downland turf. I’ve heard that another local haunt is Mount Caburn near Lewes. Last year I was pleased to be able to catch it in flower in…
Many Peas in Seaford Last Meadow
Local Leguminosae The Pea family Fabaceae or Leguminosae includes many flowers including Vetches and Vetchlings, Clovers, Bird’s Foot Trefoil and many more. There seemed to be quite a lot of these legumes when I visited the Last Meadow in Seaford in early June. A blooming meadow But there were flowers of all types blowing in…
Late August flowers in Seaford Head Nature Reserve
Wildflowers on a nature walk A week after counting Moon Carrots on Seaford Head I was back up there with Seaford Natural History Society on a nature walk lead by Sussex Wildlife Trust. As for the last few posts, I have marked any chalk grassland indicator species with an L. I didn’t photograph last weeks…
Flowering in Guestling Wood and Pett Sussex in July
A weekend in Sussex woodland At the end of July Mike and I took Ethel the camper van to the other side of Sussex to visit friends. It was very wet underfoot but we managed not to get rained on! Flora of Guestling Wood Blue Star Creeper – Pratia pedunculata I have never seen this…
Flora of Cradle Valley Seaford in July – chalk grassland
Summer evening walk with many wildflowers I went for an evening walk after being recommended a visit to Cradle Valley on the outskirts of Seaford. I was particularly looking for Burnt orchids but came across many beautiful flowers including three more orchids: Fragrant orchid, Common Spotted orchids and Pyramidal orchids. Other highlights were finding many…
Flowers of Brockenhurst in July
New Forest wildflowers In July 2021 we took Ethel the campervan to the New Forest in Hampshire for the weekend and stayed at Hollands Wood campsite near Brockenhurst. I love it that we can park in amongst the trees. Plants in the boggy field Right next to the campsite is a very wet field where…
Flora of Seaford in June
Flowering around the town This month, either side of my big campervan holiday I wandered around my Sussex hometown to see what wildflowers I could find. Early June blooms on Seaford Head On a hot early summer day I went for a walk looking for Twayblade orchids and found a Common Spotted orchid at the same…