New Year Plant Hunt 2019 - Uckfield

This is my fifth year of doing the Botanical Society of the British and Ireland's New Year Plant Hunt so I thought I knew what to expect. However, the sheer number of wild or naturalised plants in bloom took me by surprise. We have had a mild run up to the new year and this has enabled more than 40 different species to keep flowering right up until the new year.  The scores for the last few years are:

• 2015 - 21 species of which 2 were naturalised garden plants that had 'jumped the fence'
• 2016 - 34 species of which 4 were naturalised
• 2017 - 23 species of which 2 were naturalised
• 2018 - 28 species of which 3 were naturalised
• 2019 - 45 species of which 4 were naturalised

Because odd nooks and crannies near retail outlets generally give good results, I started at the Browns Lane shops.

Shaggy Soldier (Galinsoga quadriradiata) - Browns Lane shops

The first plant that I found was Shaggy Soldier (Galinsoga quadriradiata), which just below the the window of hairdressers near Tesco Express.

Nicotiana garden escapee - Near the bus stop at the top of Browns Lane

I was really surprised to find a big, showy Nicotiana garden escapee thriving near the bus stop at the top of Browns Lane.

Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum), near the petrol station.

A surprisingly good site was the grassy area at the foot of an old mossy wall near the garage at the top of the town. I found Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum), Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea) and others. I took a moment to appreciate the detail of the pretty little Herb Robert flowers.

Common Ramping Fumitory (Fumaria muralis) - scrambling up a hedge at the top of the town

Just before I got into the town itself, I raised a few eyebrows by scrambling up the grassy bank to investigate some pink flowers. I think these were Ramping Fumitory (Fumaria muralis), the mild weather has allowed them to keep growing so that they had reached the top of the hedge. When I got back down, I explained what I was up to and commented on how many flowers were still blooming. A gent walking his dog said that his cherry was blooming for the second time and that the plants are certainly behaving oddly. Several other people that I encountered along the way commented about summer flowers still flowering in their gardens or bulbs making an early start.

Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis lutea) on Holy Cross churchyard walls

By the time I had got as far as the church, I had used up about half of my allotted time but had already beaten last year's score.  My 34th plant this year was a Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis lutea), which was growing out of the churchyard wall.

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) hedge between allotments and bypass

As I was going past the allotments on the by-pass I noticed a few tiny and very early Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) blossoms in the hedge.

Oxeye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) at the Fire Station

Even more surprising were the Oxeye Daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare) I found near the fire station.

Taking stock at The Station pub.

I took a break in the Station Pub and spent a little time checking what I had found and what I still needed to look for. I was a little disappointed that I hadn't found Primroses (Primula vulgaris) or Violets but thought that I might find something In Lime Tree Avenue.

Herb Bennet in Lime Tree Avenue

In Lime Tree Avenue, the Violets and Primroses have yet to start blooming - other than the Hawthorn, there are very few spring flowers open - but there was a Herb Bennet (Geum Urbanum) left over from the summer. This seems to be the pattern this year - many summer flowers have been able to keep going due to the long, warm autumn and the mild weather since. The mild weather has also enabled the modest little weeds to prosper. Although my task was to note down species, I did notice that the number of any one species was larger than usual. I am looking forward to seeing the overall results once plant hunters from around the country have managed to upload their lists.

The Science Bit

Location: Uckfield, East Sussex.  Start point: TQ478219

41 Wild Plants Flowering on 30 December 2017

Scientific  name	common name
Achillea millefolium	Yarrow
Arabidopsis thaliana	Thale Cress
Arrhenatherum elatius	False Oat Grass
Bellis perennis	Daisy
Capsella bursa-pastoris	Shepherd's Purse
Cardamine hirsuta	Hairy Bittercress
Centranthus ruber	Red Valerian
Cerastium fontanum	Common Mouseear
Corylus avellana	Hazel
Crataegus monogyna	Hawthorn
Crepis capillaris	Smooth Hawk's-beard
Erigeron canadensis	Canadian Fleabane
Euphorbia peplus	Petty Spurge
Fumaria muralis	Common Ramping Fumitory
Galinsoga quadriradiata	Shaggy Soldier
Geranium robertianum	Herb Robert
Geum Urbanium	Herb Bennet
Hedera helix	Ivy
Hypochaeris radicata	Cat's ear
Lamium album	White Dead-nettle
Lamium purpureum	Red Dead-nettle
Leucanthemum vulgare	Oxeye Daisy
Matricaria discoidea	Pineapple Weed
Myosotis arvensis	Field Forget me not
Parietaria judaica	Pellitory-of-the-wall
Pentaglottis sempervirens	Green Alkanet
Picris echioides	Bristly Oxtongue
Poa annua	Annual Meadow Grass
Polygonum areanstrum	Equal-leaved knotweed
Polypogon viridis	Water Bent
Ranunculus acris	Meadow buttercup

4 Naturalised Plants flowering on 30 December 2018

Scientific name	common name
Bergenia cordifolia	Elephants ears
Campanula poscharskyana	Trailing Bellflower
Corydalis lutea	Yellow Corydalis
Nicotiana x sanderae