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~ a celebration of nature

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Category Archives: flowers

Field madder

07 Sunday May 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, wildflowers

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British wildflowers, Field madder, Sherardia arvensis

A member of the Bedstraw family, Field madder (Sherardia arvensis) is a low-growing annual that supposedly grows in both disturbed and cultivated ground on chalky soils. I write ‘supposedly’ because the Field madder pictured here grows along a sheltered damp and mossy road verge next to blocks of flats. Also, I’ve read – and my wildflower book states – that Field madder can grow up to 30cm tall but the plants I’ve seen have been tiny, only 5-10 cm. I guess wildflowers don’t read what’s written about them!

230507 field madder (2)

Popping out like stars against a dense background of bristly whorls of leaves, the clusters of four-petalled tiny flowers range in colour from pale pink to mauve. And, as you may have guessed from the name, the roots of Field madder can be used to make a red dye, though it is described as ‘an inferior source’ on the Oxford University Herbaria website. If you’re interested in learning more, the website also explains the source of the Sherardia name.

230507 field madder (1)

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White not pink

05 Friday May 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, nature, wildflowers

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British wildflowers, Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, Dove's-foot crane's-bill, Geranium molle, white flowers, white-flowered Dove's-foot crane's-bill

The flowers of Dove’s-foot crane’s-bill (Geranium molle) are usually described as pinkish-purple, and certainly all the plants I’ve seen previously have had tiny pink flowers, as shown in the comparison photos below. But I’ve discovered a small area at the Cosmeston Lakes Country Park where the flowers are a true white.

230505 Geranium molle (2)

I’m not sure what has caused this colour variation but it’s probably something in the soil. Before it became a country park, parts of Cosmeston were quarries, spoil tips and rubbish tips. If you follow this link to the Mary Gillham Archive website (a project I volunteered on, as my older followers will recall), you can see details – including maps and photographs – of Cosmeston during its transformation into a country park.

230505 Geranium molle (3)

One legacy of its former use is undoubtedly the presence of toxic chemicals in some areas. Indeed, the top portion of the east paddock is fenced off, not for conservation purposes but, I am reliably informed, to protect park users from whatever is buried there. Residues in the soil may well account for unusual qualities in the park’s flora and fauna.

230505 Geranium molle (1)

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April flowers

23 Sunday Apr 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, spring, wildflowers

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

British wildflowers, Spring colour, spring flowers, wildflowers

As I write this, we actually have April showers but, luckily, they weren’t falling on me or this random selection of April flowers from today’s walk. First one to name them all gets … a gold star!

230423 wildflowers

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Alder flowers

12 Sunday Mar 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, trees

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Alder, Alder flowers, female Alder flowers, tree flowers

It’s almost two months to the day since I blogged about the first Hazel I’d seen with both the male and female flowers open (Flowers and catkins, 15 January). Perhaps I’ve been remiss in looking for these, but yesterday I spotted my first Alder tree where both types of flowers had opened. The reproductive systems of the two plants are remarkably similar, both with long dangling pollen-shedding male catkins and much smaller pink anemone-like female flowers, except that the female Hazel flowers develop into a nut and the female Alder into a cone. It’s the female flowers that I find particularly eye-catching.

230312 alder female flowers

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Fit to bursting

05 Sunday Mar 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, trees

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male yew flowers, tree flowers, Yew, Yew tree flowers

I was checking this Yew tree for galls – found none – but it was absolutely covered in flower buds that were almost literally about to burst open. A few more days and this male tree will be spreading a sea of yellow pollen all around anytime the wind blows or someone brushes against its branches. How do I know it’s a male tree? Well, in a previous post, Flowering Yew trees from way back in March 2016, I blogged about Yew flowers so, if you want to know more about these fascinating trees, just click on that link.

230305 yew flowers

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End of winter wild flowers

26 Sunday Feb 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, trees, wildflowers, winter

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British wildflowers, catkins, tree flowers, winter colour, winter flowers

As another winter draws to a close, I thought I would document the plant and tree flowers currently in bloom in my little bit of south Wales.

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First Blackthorn blossom

19 Sunday Feb 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, trees

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blackthorn, Blackthorn blossom, Spring blossom, tree blossom

230219 blackthorn (1)

Merrily, merrily shall I live now
Under the blossom that hangs on the bough.
~  from the song ‘Where the bee sucks’, William Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act V

230219 blackthorn (2)

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Spring flowers in winter rain

18 Saturday Feb 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, wildflowers

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crocus, Lesser Celandine, primrose, raindrops on flowers, Snowdrops, Spring colour, spring flowers, Winter aconite

As the remnants of Storm Otto continue to blast and batter, a local meander turned up these glorious spring flowers, little beacons of colour and light on a grey winter’s day.

230218 spring flowers winter rain

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Crocuses

12 Sunday Feb 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, winter

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

crocus, Crocuses, winter colour, winter flowers

I have no new native wildflower blooms to share this week but I was captivated by the beauty of these Crocuses, growing under trees in a Cardiff park and thought you might enjoy them too.

230212 crocuses

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Spring messenger

05 Sunday Feb 2023

Posted by sconzani in flowers, wildflowers, winter

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

British wildflowers, Lesser Celandine, signs of spring, winter colour, yellow wildflowers

According to Flora Britannica, Spring messenger is a now defunct local name for Lesser celandine, and how wonderfully appropriate that name is. I’ve been watching several areas of Lesser celandine plants, wondering which would put forth the first flower but, in fact, this particular bloom was a complete surprise. I had to cross a narrow country road so a truck could complete its turn in to a tight driveway entrance and, as I was crossing, I spotted this tiny drop of sunshine beaming out from under a bush. Spring magic!

230205 lesser celandine

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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