Charles Darwin Day

Yesterday (12th February) was Charles Darwin Day. This years local celebration was a Botanical Survey. Botanical is the posh word flowers and plants. We went to St. Dyfnogs Well near my house to do the survey as Julia, a lady from our village, had arranged a survey. Another lady was also there who was an expert on plants, she was explaining everything to us. She also lent me a Hand Lens which would help me see the plants closer up.


Ivy
Hedera Hibernica

There are two different types of Ivy here, near Denbigh. One of them is Hedera Hibernica, which is the one we saw, and Hedera Helix. The way you ID these are the hairs on the underside of the leaf. If it has white hairs and are in a star formation, its Hedera Hibernica. If it has yellow hairs and is lying flat, its Hedera Helix, also known as English Ivy.

Dog Mercury
Mercurialis Perennis


In this picture (sorry not the best, I took them on my phone as it was raining) you can see the old plants from last year and the new ones from this year. This plant likes shade and is very common in the UK, but are not doing well in Ireland, Orkney and Shetland. If you found this plant in an open field, it means there used to be a woodland or hedge there, a bit like a history teacher!!

Christmas Tree Moss 
Vesicularia Montageni


 I spotted this in a clump between a tree an log. I have seen these once before but didn't know what they were called. It's got a spiky appearance but isn't spiky at all.


We also saw:

Yew Trees
Gooseberry
Hart's-Tongue Fern
Hazel
Herb Robert
Lesser Celandine
Male Fern
Opposite Leaved Golden Saxifrage
Wood Avens


Opposite Leaved Golden Saxifrage


Comments

  1. Nanny18 February 2022 at 10:57

    You obviously got a Ilot of information from your trip, and have found out a lot since, well done, very interesting

    ReplyDelete

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