BSBI Garden Wildflower Hunt - 3rd Survey

Another 3 weeks has passed since I did the second BSBI Garden Wildflower Hunt. Although the weather continues dry and warm, the pace seems to have slowed down a little.

Foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea)

We are getting to some of the bigger, showier flowers such as Foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea). I think that these were introduced.

Red Campion (Silene dioica)

When my parents first arrived, there was a Red Campion (Silene dioica) already growing in the garden. Various creatures ate it and the Fallow Deer that used to visit the garden were the final straw and it expired. On an impulse, I planted replacement ones, along with some Ragged Robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi) last year.

Procumbent Yellow Sorrel (Oxalis corniculata)

There are still plenty of weeds popping up. The Procumbent Yellow Sorrel (Oxalis corniculata). This was actually introduced by gardeners by 1656 and has been spreading ever since.

Hairy Sedge (Carex hirta)

More grasses and sedges are beginning to show and become identifiable.  There were plenty that I recognised from previous years such as Barren Brome (Anisantha sterilis), Grey Sedge (Carex divlsa ss divulsa) etc.  However, there was one that was new to me, Hairy Sedge (Carex hirta).

Combining my three counts, I have recorded 77 wildflowers of which:

• 57 probably occurred naturally in our garden
• 20 were sown or planted.