Day 46: Field Forget-Me-Not

Amongst the daisies, common vetch and Germander speedwell is a single spike of field forget-me-not. Its pale blue, five-petaled flowers reminiscent of a clear summer sky, where faint puffs of white cloud gather around its yellow centre. Its unopened flower buds covered in pale hairs, when they go to seed the seedpods will stick to clothing and drop off to germinate elsewhere.

These dainty flowered-plants are very common on roadsides, so I'm sure more specimens will appear in out little patch as a symbol of love of the natural world, rather than a token to be worn to not be forgotten by a lover.

References:

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/forget-me-not-common (accessed 09/05/2020)

Day 45: Common Daisy

The common daisy certainly lives up to its name, but isn't it a glorious sight to see an otherwise boring green lawn come alive with these fallen stars of white and yellow? An even more magical sight when they become pink tinged because 'the faeries sit on them' when they close up at night.

Interestingly, researchers have studied daisies in Africa and have discovered that those which close at night produce cryptic colouration on the lower surfaces of their 'petals' to camouflage them from herbivores. Whether or not this applies to our native common daisy, I am not sure, and they have only studied one plant family so far.

A single daisy head isn't, in fact, just one flower, it is a composite of many tiny flowers which make up the bright yellow centre and the white ray-florets which appear like petals. Daisies are perennial herbs, so they will keep popping back up year after year, providing a valuable nectar source for bumblebees, honeybees and hoverflies. 

References:

Rose, F (2006) The Wild Flower Key, Penguin Books Ltd.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/08/190830112819.htm (accessed 09/05/2020)

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/daisy (accessed 09/05/2020)

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/common-daisy (accessed 09/05/2020)

Day 44: Germander Speedwell

Another gorgeous wildflower that is growing well in our 'wildflower meadow' is the Germander speedwell. Clusters of pale blue flowers with dark blue veins that look as thought they could have been painted. The four blue petals surround a yellow and white centre, with two long anthers and a stigma emanating out like whiskers.

This plant is widespread and common in verges and hedgerow, so are relatively easy to find. Even so, these 'cat's eyes' are a colourful addition to our little wild patch amongst the fresh green leaves of those yet to flower. 

References:

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/germander-speedwell (accessed 07/05/2020)

Day 43: Common Vetch

These beautiful magenta flowers belong to the common vetch, a plant that is growing in abundance in our 'wildflower meadow'. The leguminous plants are scrambling and climbing over each other to create a lovely display of fresh green foliage with, from afar, polka-dots of pink. Close up, these flowers look like miniature sweet peas, so it is unsurprising that both are in the pea, or legume family. Their climbing habit has caused this patch to become a small jungle of leaflets and delicate flowers, creating a wonderland to peer into from the undergrowth. 

As I watched, several common carder bees were visiting the flowers, seemingly favouring them over other nearby blooms. Looking closely, many of the leaves have also been nibbled, so they are hopefully hosting some caterpillars or other animals. The common vetch also has other uses, being in the pea family, it is a nitrogen producer, so can be used as green manure and can be grown as livestock fodder.

References:

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/common-vetch (accessed 06/05/2020)

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/common-vetch (accessed 06/05/2020)

Day 42: Bugle

Like an ethereal wood-sprite who only appears in your peripheral vision rather than being in focus when you look directly at it, this, the first flower spike on either of my bugle plants refused to allow me to focus fully on the uppermost open blue flower each time I pressed the shutter. The dark green-purple foliage spreading like slowly creeping arms to fill the bare ground below the winter honeysuckle, where I can make nothing else grow, is now throwing up thick, hairy purple spikes where these little blue veined flowers bloom. Their shape reminds me more of fairy-tale creatures, of fairies disguised as flowers, or as one with flowers, possibly more than any other in my garden, reminding me of days of poring over Brian Froud's fantastical books. 

This perennial woodland plant is also much loved by bumblebees and is a good early nectar source for green-veined white and orange-tip butterflies. The wild flower, native to most of the British Isles, is Ajuga reptans. The two I have, Ajuga reptans Braunherz, are cultivars of this and are easy to grow under almost all conditions.

References:

Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/bugle (accessed 03/05/2020)

https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/89313/Ajuga-reptans-Braunherz/Details (accessed 03/05/2020)

Day 39: Dandelion

The golden dandelion, lighting up lawns, verges, pavements... any where it can lay its roots. Time and time again, we are told how pollinators use these much maligned wild flowers as an essential source of nectar and pollen, and yet time and time again, gardeners and councils try to obliterate them where they dare to shine. John Clare described them as "fallen stars in a green sea of grass" in his poem A Rhapsody, so why can't more of us see the dandelion in this light? Those awful adverts still appear on TV where they depict 'evil' cartoon dandelions being heroically removed by a gardener with weedkiller, but surely it is time we stopped showing these misleading roles. What is the worst thing a dandelion is going to do if growing in a lawn, park or playground? 

Worryingly, in trying to search for a paper I read some time ago that suggests dandelion pollen lacks certain nutrients and may be poor quality if fed to bee larvae alone, I came across a slogan that stated 'Save the Bees, Remove Dandelions'. Whilst it may be true that dandelions alone won't save our dwindling insect population, we do need to include them in a more diverse ecosystem that we can encourage in our gardens and parks. Using pesticides of any sort is certainly not going to help, due to the many, now well documented effects many have on the nervous system of pollinators. Caterpillars of some butterfly and moth species will use dandelions as a food plant, so we must also consider insects other than pollinators (or at least different stages of their life cycle).

Perhaps if we shifted views to seeing dandelions as a wild flower, rather than a weed? Or perhaps if we shifted the obsession so many of us still seem to have with keeping a perfect lawn? Or at least try to become more tolerant of allowing the boundaries to blur between a 'perfect garden' and 'nature'. Indeed, my perfect garden would encourage as much wildlife in as possible, and I try to.

References:

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/dandelion (accessed 02/05/2020)

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2019/07/what-do-caterpillars-eat/ (accessed 02/05/2020)

Day 34: Himalayan Cranesbill

Today. the first of my cranesbills began flowering, Himalayan cranesbill 'Gravetye' or Geranium himalayense 'Gravetye'. The blue petals with prominent veins, beginning as cream then merging to deep pink as they sprawl from the centre of the flower caught my eye last year, although I must confess that I had completely forgotten I had bought and planted them.

There are many varieties of cranesbill, or geranium, that are absolutely loved by bees. Some are native species, like the gorgeous meadow cranesbill that can be found along road verges and in meadows, others are not. Neither of the varieties I have are native, but they are still an absolute hit with bees of all shapes and sizes, none the less.

A quick point about cranesbills, geraniums. They should not be confused with pelargoniums, often sold under the name of geraniums, that are completely different and not particularly beneficial for wildlife at all.

References:
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.

Day 33: Water avens

The delicately nodding apricot flowers inside deep red sepals belong to the subtle and beautiful water avens, Geum rivale. The dainty flowers sit upon tall, red, hairy stems and above green, neatly lobed leaves. It took me a while to find this native variety in a garden centre, and I was caught out by what I assume must be more vigorous hybrids that were incorrectly labelled, but this one now lives happily in the margins of our pond.

This is the first of this year's flowers, and it looks like it will be a promising year for this lovely plant. It happily grows in a shady area of the garden, perhaps receiving just two to three hours sunlight each day. The flowers will be visited by bumblebees once they have learnt its whereabouts.

References:
Thomas, A. (2017) Gardening for Wildlife, Bloomsbury Publishing PLC.