Tom the Botanist

This week, It was generally a wet and cold, but the botanising was augmented by my birthday trip to North Wales. We visited the Nannau estate for the Precipice walk and then the Torrent Walk – both near Dolgellau.

I suppose the most conspicuous thing is still the bluebells, but the wild garlic and hawthorn isn’t far behind now. Ferns are beginning to unfurl, and spikes of bugle are flowering along woodland rides and in our back garden.

Featured Find

This week, I was happy to see the tree mallow Malva arborea along Pier Road, Tywyn (SH58070066). It was growing on a rough verge and was already quite a height. According to the BSBI atlas:

It usually grows in shallow, nutrient-enriched soils, occurring most frequently amongst vegetation in seabird roosts, and on ground enriched by garden waste. Plants are killed by severe frost and the species is therefore restricted to mild micro-climates near the sea. 

The List

1. Hedgerow crane’s-bill Geranium pyrenaicum. Welshpool.
2. Meadow foxtail Alopecurus pratensis. Powis Castle Estate.
3. Wood sorrel Oxalis acetosella. Nannau, Dolgellau.
4. Tormentil Potentilla erecta. Nannau, Dolgellau.
5. Bilberry Vaccinium myrtillus. Nannau, Dolgellau.
6. Hard fern (crosiers) Blechnum spicant. Torrent Walk, Dolgellau.
7. Marsh marigold Caltha palustris. Torrent Walk, Dolgellau.
8. Water avens Geum rivale. Torrent Walk, Dolgellau.
9. Welsh poppy Papaver cambricum. Betws-y-Coed.
10. Tree mallow Malva arborea. Tywyn.
11. Thrift Armeria maritima. Tywyn beach front.
12. Bird’s-foot trefoil Lotus corniculatus. Tywyn beach front.
13. Scurvy-grass Cochlearia sp. Tywyn beach front.
14. Red campion Silene dioica. Lane along Caethle, Tywyn.