Tom the Botanist

30.03.25. Wilden Top Meadow. “Three large clumps growing on anthills, Grassland fairly rank so possibility of becoming swamped out. Patches c. 50cm x 50cm. Plenty of flowers SO82857243” “Another small patch c. 20cm x 20cm at SO82797242 with Rumex acetosa”

I can’t recall ever seeing this plan in Worcestershire. The only record I have of this species on iNaturalist is from a work site in Catterick, North Yorkshire, dated July 2023.

While cycling on Sunday afternoon, I decided to visit a rough grassland area known as Wilden Top Meadow, where C. arvense had been previously recorded by W.A. Thompson in 1993 and most recently by C. Beamish in 2024.

I was pleased to find three clumps of the plant thriving on a series of anthills in what is otherwise quite overgrown grassland, which is reportedly owned by Wilden Industrial Estate. There were two distinct populations: one near the entrance at SO82857243 and another further into the site near the broom scrub at approximately SO82797242.

I believe the plant’s survival can be attributed to localised disturbance occurring on the anthills and pathways used by local residents, as most of the population was found on hummocks adjacent to the main path running through the site and I didn’t find any more in the wider grassland.

What does the future look like for this diminutive, relatively scarce county plant, if the site continues to be ungrazed and the bracken marches ever further forwards?