Odds and Ends

A few interesting plants that never made it into a specific post over the last few months...

Hairy-fruited broom (Cystisus striatus) found naturalised at a new site near Cridling Stubbs (VC63).

It was nice to find good numbers of truly Wild Pansy (Viola tricolor subsp. tricolor) near Rossington (VC63). Not a common sight on arable margins these days, and interesting to see so much variation in flower colour and form.

At the same location I was also surprised to find a thriving population of Yellow Bartsia (Parentucellia viscosa)

Siberian Wallflower (Erysimum x marshallii) popped up again in its usual spot in Woodlesford (VC63) where it was first sown several years back. Its one of those plants I was aware of but did not appreciate how different it was. Lots of years needlessly pondering any vaguely orange Wallflower (Erysimum cheiri) just in case!

A flash of gold(ish) in Little Preston (VC64) turned out to be Bowle's Golden Grass a cultivar of Wild Millet (Milium effusum 'Aureum'). Unfortunately, I never did get to see it flower, as the strimmers got there first. I'm surprised this grass is not more frequent, as it breeds true and self sows around my garden.

While on the edge of a farm ditch near Swillington, this stunning and unexpected Crown-Imperial Fritillary (Fritillaria imperialis 'Rubra Maxima') with other garden throwouts.

More Ivies

The peak of the snowdrops is perhaps still two weeks off in my part of Yorkshire, meaning there is still not much of interest in local woods and hedge banks as we hit 'mud month' (that really is an old and very apt name for February). Thankfully, there is a little colour around here and there in the form of escaped cultivars of Common Ivy (Hedera helix).

Two golden forms caught my eye today as I slopped around Woodlesford (VC63).

'Goldchild' is a distinctive form with moderately large (for H. helix) thin leaves. It is a relatively modern cultivar coming into cultivation from the 1970's,

Not too far away was this smaller, glossier and more leathery leaved form. In comparison with the above, the gold patterning is much less extensive than the patches of green and grey-green. This seems to be 'Tricolor' which is a very old cultivar that originates before 1865. I can see why it has remained popular for so long. It is meant to develop a pink edge to the leaf in autumn but this is not apparent here.

Recent Highlights

Time for a catch-all post of recent finds, providing a selection of plants that have caught my eye for one reason or another on daily lockdown walks.

First up, Garden Peony (Paeonia officinalis 'Rubra Plena') the old fashioned and long grown 'female peony' of the apothecaries. While this plant is not always in flower when encountered, when it is it always seems to be this double-flowered stalwart. This photo is a bit washed out, the flowers are a more red in the reality. An attractive plant in an unattractive location near the Newsam Green landfill (VC64).

I was pleased to re-find my long known plant of Coralbells (Heuchera sanguinea) on an old stone retaining wall in Woodlesford (VC63). Every year I think its been lost to the ivy, only for it to reappear. This plant is a particularly fine red. There is a possibility that some naturalised populations are Heuchera x brizoides, and this probably needs further consideration, especially if the leaves are silvered. This plant appears to be the true species, but I might revisit this later.

I have a fondness for Crane's-bills, so it was nice to find this Dusky Crane's-bill (Geranium phaeum var. phaeum) on the margin of one of the local rhubarb fields in Woodlesford. It is also a good chance to contrast (second photo) with Munich Crane's-bill (Geranium x monacense nothovar. anglicum), a plant recorded a couple of weeks back in Swillington (VC64). Note the strongly reflexed petals. It also comes in a dark-flowered form (nothovar. monacense), and a reliable spot for this used to be (not checked recently) the Engine Fields, Yeadon (VC64).

Near Fishpond Lock, Woodlesford there is this large bush of a cultivar of Evergreen Spindle (Euonymus japonicus 'Mediopictus'). Very striking, but ...

... if it is not maintained it often reverts and now most of this bush is green. Unfortunately, some variegated cultivars are not particularly stable over time. So how to record? Chances are the cultivar won't be there to find in 5 years time, when the next observer will likely be confronted with a clearly unvariegated bush?

Finally, after blogging recently about Pale Pink-sorrel, another highlight of Oulton churchyard (VC63) is the well naturalised London-pride (Saxifraga x urbium). Nothing beats the froth of this charming little plant when seen en masse and thriving.

Senecio squalidus var. subinteger

This is a curious variety of Oxford Ragwort distinguished by its sinuate-dentate oblong to oblong-lanceolate leaves. There are scattered records for this variety locally, on my patch in Woodlesford and Oulton (VC63) and in wider Leeds and Bradford where it has been recorded by Jesse Tregale and/or Mike Wilcox. Other than one other record in the BSBI Distribution Database from VC37 there are no other mapped records, although Sell & Murrell cite records for Cambridge, Didcot and Exmouth.

I have never been certain if it is a periodic chance mutation or a true variety, but I have known it in the same location in Oulton for at least 5 years. Over most of this period it seemed to persist as a single plant, but this year I found a few more at its main site and a new plant a kilometre away. Hardly vigorous, but I am more satisfied now that it is capable of regenerating itself from seed.

Bill Wallis

While not native to Britain, I'm firmly of the opinion that any hedgerow or verge is enhanced by the presence of a bit of Hedgerow Crane's-bill (Geranium pyrenaicum). The typical plant has flowers purplish-pink in colour, but white-flowered plants (f. albiflorum) and colonies are not infrequent and breed true even when present with other colour forms. I have both forms in my garden (along with the large-flowered 'Isparta') and while rare intermediates are found, all have maintained themselves for nearly a decade suggesting that a lot of seed set is through self-pollination.

Much more notable in the wild is the form known by the cultivar name 'Bill Wallis', this has striking blue-purple flowers with a prominent contrasting white eye.

It is a form I only know from one location, and even in cultivation it is perhaps not common (a quick trawl of the internet will demonstrate how regularly this cultivar is confused with the typical form). There are only a handful of records in the BSBI database for this plant.

Yesterday provided a good opportunity to catch this cultivar in peak bloom at Woodlesford Lock (VC63), where it has persisted in rough grassland for several years. Indeed it seems to have increased year on year.

Patch Update

I've previously extolled the virtues of patch botanising. Carbon neutral, never failing to deliver something new or interesting, as well as being a chance to reconnect with 'old friends'.

So walking distance from home this weekend ... Well the big news is that Grass-poly (Lythrum hyssopifolia) is back and in bloom at Skelton Lake.

Dipping my toe into hawkweeds thanks to Vince Jones' excellent book (sadly out of print again, time for a braver print run Yorkshire Naturalists' Union?), I am happy with these two from Skelton Lake. The first is Anglian Hawkweed (Hieracium anglorum), which I first found a couple of years ago and misnamed as festinum, but I came to the conclusion that if the stellate hairs on the phyllaries were that difficult to find and required a microscope they were probably not numerous and I should probably try a different route through the key. A handsome plant when well grown. I found this species again on waste ground in Woodlesford.

Much more delicate in comparison, Southern Hawkweed (Hieracium argillaceum).

We are blessed locally with lots of Sweet-briar (Rosa rubiginosa), which fills the air with scent on a warm day.

But this beauty in Rothwell Country Park must surely be a candidate for Glaucous Dog-rose x Sweet-briar (Rosa vosagiaca x rubiginosa). The same scent, but with acicles patchily distributed and note those folded leaflets with a glaucous underside and red petioles.

Up next, two handsome garden escapes at Newsam Green. Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum 'Laciniatum Group') and a semi-double form of Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium). Sell and Murrell published names for some of the variants of the latter species but unfortunately plants like this, while commonly encountered, fall through the gaps.

At this location and down by the canal in Woodlesford, I found these dinky little plants of Field Pansy (Viola arvensis var. derelicta). I'm giving the Sell and Murrell classification a fair go. Its tempting to suggest these are underfed plants, but it wasn't overly bothering the Garden Pansy and Heartsease cultivars nearby. This variety is notable for its very small flowers on near erect pedicels and single unbranched vertical stem, almost like a little soldier standing to attention.

Then some interesting trees near the canal in Woodlesford. First this stunning form of Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus f. erythrocarpum). Like its purple-leaved cousin the best forms always seem to be planted, but it does occur spontaneously as well. I'm not sure of the origin of this tree, but its looking good.

Then Green Alder (Alnus viridis), and self-sown Red Alder (Alnus rubra).

And then another alder, but which one? This is a shrubby species with small leaves that left me scratching my head. I eventually came down on the North American form of Grey Alder (Alnus incana subsp. rugosa) that looks nothing like the tree from this side of the 'pond'. It seems quite variable across its range, as indicated by the number of varieties in Sell and Murrell, but I found enough images online to provide confidence that my ID was likely to be correct (unless anyone knows better?).

Not a bad haul for the price of a bit of shoe leather. Lets end with the handsome bramble Rubus x pseudoidaeus which is frequent hereabouts but annoyingly not crossing the river into my VC!

Flowering Currants

Nothing beats, as far as I am concerned, the early spring exuberance of Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum). My childhood memories are not just of the colour and the scent, but also the buzz of countless bumblebees attracted to this bountiful nectar source. In Yorkshire the latter seems to be reduced, presumably because the cooler climate means that the flowers are too early to coincide with the first brood of worker bees.

It is not a native plant but is commonly naturalised in VC64. In VC31 it is rare and usually of planted origin. Everyone knows the standard red flowered form, but there are other cultivars with flowers of different shades. In West Yorkshire (VC63 and 64), a pale pink form is commonly encountered and given its predominance around Woodlesford clearly breeds true. The name 'Pallescens' seems to cover this plant.