This is a new plant for me, and I freely admit to having walked past it several times before finally noticing it, perhaps because it only flowers from July to September. It’s Common calamint (Clinopodium ascendens), a member of the mint family, the Lamiaceae, and, not surprisingly, its leaves when crushed smell deliciously of mint.

The plant in question, in the photo above, is the one with small greyish-looking leaves (though they’re actually green with white speckles) and even smaller pink flowers. My wildflower book says it can be found in a variety of habitats, from hedge banks and bushy areas to dry grassy scrubland and roadside verges. The plants I found were growing alongside an under-cliff path that leads to a local beach, so it seems this mint is very adaptable. Despite that, there are only 199 records in the Welsh biodiversity database, so perhaps I’m not the only person to walk past these plants without noticing them.