23 Sunday Jun 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, flowers, nature
I’m out on a birding trip today and may be home late so here’s a little something I prepared earlier on the gorgeous Foxgloves that I’ve been spotting, growing at the edges of train tracks heading up the Welsh Valleys, and under trees, alongside hedgerows and amongst the bracken at Aberbargoed Grasslands. Foxy places perhaps? Their liking for the places frequented by foxes is the only reason Richard Mabey comes up with in my Flora Britannica for their Foxglove name. It’s a mystery!
22 Saturday Jun 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, flowers, nature, wildflowers
Tags
#365DaysWild, British wildflowers, Cathays Cemetery, Fox and cubs, Grim the collier, orange hawkweed, wildflowers
The Orange hawkweed (also known as Fox-and-cubs and Grim the collier) was putting on a magnificent display in Cathays Cemetery today.
So, I thought I’d better grab some photos because this is a cemetery that is (mis)managed by the ‘neat and tidy’ brigade, those who place value in strimming everything to within an inch of its life rather than in the beauty of the wildflowers and the food they provide to insects.
18 Tuesday Jun 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, insects, nature, wildflowers
Tags
#365DaysWild, Bird’s-foot trefoil, British moths, Common spotted orchid, moths, Pyramidal orchid, red clover, Six-spot burnet, wildflowers
Remember I said on Friday that they’d be ‘coming soon‘, well here they are. The Six-spot burnet moths have begun to emerge, buzzing around the wildflowers like little red-and-black bumblebees. Delightful!
13 Thursday Jun 2019
Posted in flowers, nature, wildflowers
Tags
#365DaysWild, British native plants, British wildflowers, Iris, Iris foetidissima, Iris pseudacorus, native British irises, Stinking iris, wildflowers, Yellow iris
Though garden escapees can falsely colour the picture, Britain has just two native irises – these are they …
Yellow iris (Iris pseudacorus)
Also known as Yellow flag iris, Jacob’s sword and a host of other vernacular names, the Yellow iris likes to bury its roots in the wet, often by ponds, streams and rivers but also in meadows where conditions under-root are damp and soggy. And that’s where I found these Yellow irises yesterday, in an area of damp ground inside a huge motorway roundabout north of Cardiff.
Stinking iris (Iris foetidissima)
Despite its (I think) unjustified name – apparently its leaves when rubbed, emit a smell like stale raw beef, but why would you rub its leaves? – this iris has the most exquisite delicate flowers. It can be found in a variety of habitats, from shady woodland rides to exposed cliff-tops – and that’s where I found this one, flowering happily alongside the coastal path at Lavernock.
08 Wednesday May 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, flowers, nature, spring, wildflowers
Tags
#365DaysWild, blue flowers, blue wildflowers, British flora, pink flowers, pink wildflowers, wildflowers
Rain, rain, rain today but I managed to get out for a local bimble without getting too wet.
Due to the risk of rain damaging my good camera, I just took my point-and-click and, as there weren’t many insects braving the weather, the subject today had to be inanimate, in this case wildflowers, for no particular reason in shades of pinks and blues. Can you name them?
04 Monday Mar 2019
Posted in 365DaysWildin2019, flowers, nature, wildflowers
When I see violets, I always think of my nana Johno, my mother’s mother. She always had violets growing in her garden and would often pick a few to bring inside so she could enjoy their sweet scent. I spotted these particular violets on my way to Cosmeston this morning, growing wild on a grassy bank. I wasn’t able to smell them but I’m fairly sure these are Sweet violets (Viola odorata), which, as well as the traditional purple colour, can also be found in this pretty white variation.
23 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in flowers, nature, plants, wildflowers
Tags
#WildflowerHour, #winter10, blooming wildflowers, British flora, wildflowers, winter flowers, winter-blooming wildflowers
Well, I have to say I’m really rather pleased, and surprised, with this week’s blooming wildflower finds. I certainly didn’t expect to find Dove’s-foot crane’s-bill (Geranium molle) still flowering at Christmastime, and the Mallow and Red dead nettle were also nice surprises. So, this week I don’t just have Winter 10 for Wildflowerhour, I have Winter 21.
16 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in flowers, nature, wildflowers, winter
Tags
#WildflowerHour, #winter10, British wildflowers, cats, flowering wildflowers, wildflowers, winter flowers, Winter heliotrope
It’s certainly getting a little more difficult now to find any wildflowers in bloom but, tucked away from the prevailing westerlies and battering rain in small sheltered niches, a few wee beauties still persist.
And, of course, the winter-flowering species, like the Winter heliotrope pictured above, are just beginning their flowering period. I managed to find several large swathes of this invasive plant in and around Penarth this week. My other finds are shown below.
09 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in flowers, nature, wildflowers, winter
Tags
#WildflowerHour, #winter10, British wildflowers, Penarth, wildflowers, wildflowers blooming in winter, winter flowers, Zigzag path
I’ve blogged previously about the wildflower and invertebrate delights of the local zigzag path that leads from Penarth down the cliffs to Penarth Marina. It’s a path I walk at least once a week so, during Friday’s wander, I decided to see what wildflowers were still in bloom there for this week’s Wildflowerhour and its Winter 10 challenge. And here they are …
02 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in autumn, flowers, nature, wildflowers, winter
Here are this week’s still-flowering wildflowers for Wildflowerhour’s #Winter10 challenge, found during my perambulations around my local patch. These are (I think): Dove’s-foot crane’s-bill (above), Bush vetch, Common chickweed, Daisy, Herb Robert, Ivy-leaved toadflax, Petty spurge, Red campion, a sowthistle (possibly Smooth sowthistle) (must pay more attention to the leaves next time), and Yellow corydalis.
earthstar 
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