Flowers in June

 

 

 

 

 

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Kirkconnell Flow

Raised bog, birch and oak wood, scots pines, marshland.

Abundant: greater stitchwort, blaeberry, cotton grass, heather but not yet in flower.

Plentiful: bluebells and bugles.

Here and there: wood sorrel, buttercups, dandelion, daisies, white clover, germander speedwell, thistle, cow parsley, wood avens.

The predominant flower just inside the birch wood is the greater stitchwort which is bright white against a lush green background. The wood anemones have gone but there are still a few wood sorrel flowers hanging their heads in the shade. The bugles and bluebells are fading fast but the broom remains bright. Deeper in the woods there are few flowers though yellow azaleas and bright red rhododendrons can be seen far from the beaten track. Below the Scots Pines the forest floor is mostly covered with blaeberry, its red flowers hidden beneath the leaves. At the edge of the trees the blaeberry gives way to heather on the drier sections and cotton grass in the marsh. The heather is yet to flower but is showing signs of new growth. Beside the footpath on the way back to the car park there are a few buttercups, dandelions, thistles and wood avens. The car parking area has a different collection with daisies, dandelions, white clover, thistles, cow parsley, and germander speedwell.

The Hills:

A footpath through deciduous forest on a small hill, which briefly joins a disused railway through a heavily shaded rocky cutting, then more open woodland which at higher elevation is conifers.

Abundant (huge clumps of flowers that you just cannot miss): red campion, buttercups, bluebells (though the bracken is gradually hiding these), pink purslane, wild strawberry, germander speedwell.

Plentiful: bugles, wood avens, and foxgloves just peeking from their buds.

Here and there: daisies, dandelion, hawkweed, thistles, wood sorrel, violet, herb robert, yellow pimpernel, hawthorn, broom, white campion, forget-me nots, heath speedwell, greater stitchwort, lady’s smocks, cow parsley, pignut, garlic mustard, welsh poppies, wild geranium, primrose, woodruff, vetch, ox-eye daisy.

At The Hills the footpath beneath deciduous woods is lined with red campion and carpets of meadow buttercups. Amongst all the yellow flowers it would be easy to overlook the wood avens and yellow pimpernel beside the path but they are there in large numbers. Below the trees the ground has a good covering of bluebells but their blue is becoming less vivid as the growing bracken hides them. Further along the path the bugles have staked their ground. The old railway cutting is a little too dark for most flowers though a handful of wood sorrel flowers are hanging in there. Some Herb Robert, the occasional red campion and wood avens and a single violet are also holding out in the shade. Out of the cutting and in a flatter area the path has mats of pink purslane to either side and the blue of the bluebells and bugles is beating the pink of the red campion and small stand of white campion. The foxgloves are standing tall with the flowers still in their buds. Climbing the steeper path there are a few more buttercups, hawthorn blossom and also some wood avens. The higher path has forget-me-nots, germander speedwell, wild strawberries, and broom. The stitchwort was only present in one place and there were occasional cuckooflowers. Some white flowers were just budding and perhaps next week I will know what they are. There was cow parsley and woodruff though the latter only has the very occasional flower at present. Back on the lower path I spotted herb Robert, primroses, garlic mustard, wild geranium, vetch and pignut. The common or garden daisies and dandelions seemed only present near the car park where the welsh poppies were hanging out.

Walking to work.

Abundant: daisies, buttercups, white clover, monkey-flower, groundsel.

Here and there: dandelions, bugle, wild strawberry, ivy leafed toadflax, speedwells, forget-me-not, bittersweet, bluebells and pink bluebells, cow parsley, welsh poppy, common poppy, hawthorn, broom, fox and cubs, hawkweed, yellow corydalis, greater stitchwort, herb robert, red campion, thistle, pink purslane, wood avens, primrose, woodruff, dame’s violet, oxeye daisy, solomon’s seal, coltsfoot, crosswort, hedge mustard, nettle, hop trefoil, ragwort, ground elder, angelica, ribwort plantain, vetch, great lettuce, purple bellflower. And half a dozen I can’t identify with certainty.