A few more to finish July

Creeping Thistle: Cirsium arvense 

Harts Tongue Fern

Asplenium scolopendrium

Canadian Goldenrod  Solidago canadensis

 (white Form)Rose bay willow herb

Chamerion angustifolium 'Album'

Purple Toadflax linaria purpurea

(Pale) Red Campion Silene dioica

Bindweed Convolvulus sepium

Spotted deadnettle (Lamium maculatum

Annual nettle Urtica urens

Clustered Bellflower (Campanula glomerata)

Field poppy Papaver rhoeas

Hearts ease Viola tricolor

Field Scabious Knautia arvensis

Pale Persicaria Polygonum lapathifolium

Red Shanks Persicaria maculosa Gray,

I know I have shown Wild Carrot before but this ones shows perfectly the single red flower that sits in the middle of  Wild Carrot flowers

Newly opened flowers for 21st July

    Himalayan Balsam       Impatiens glandulifera,

Common Ragwort Senecio jacobaea

I always pull this weed out but one or two seem to escape but it will be toast tomorrow

Meadow views for July

The Pink Musk Mallows and Knapweeds have now formed huge clumps if the weather improves over the next few weeks all the Knapweeds will open and the whole field will be alive with butterflies and bees

The Yorkshire Fog add a lovely misty look to the Knapweed and Musk Mallow 

The Knapweeds and the Corn Marigold make a beautiful combination

New flowers for 19th July

Wild Blackberry Rubus fruticosus
 

Nipplewort 
(Lapsana communis L.)

 

English Stonecrop sedum anglicum
 

Eastern Rocket Sisymbrium orientale

Dyers Rocket Weld Reseda luteola
 

The reason I started my little meadow

Here is the farmland that is in front of our property. Although there are no sheep and cattle in the photo you can see that there is not one bit of colour anywhere only  grass that is completely  grazed down to almost nothing.

He was released as soon as photo was taken

This is the farmland that surrounds the property, the only thing growing here is grass and thistles. The rose hedge is mine.Apart from the railway track that is quite near by there is no food for bees or butterflies all the farmers are concerned about are sheep and cattle. its such a shame. If the farmers just provided a narrow margin around their fields it  would make such a difference to the wildlife.This will never happen unless they are paid to do it.
Even in my small 1/2 acre patch the change in wildlife is quite amazing only yesterday we found our first grass hopper I heard them for the first time only this week . In 38 years I have never heard them here so it was a real thrill  to think what I am starting to achieve is really worth while.
 I estimate that by the end of the summer over 150 different wild flowers will have bloomed in the meadow and hopefully next year there will be even more.

New additions 14th July

Purple loosestrife Lythrum salicaria 

Rowan Tree (Sorbus Aucuparia)

Crab Apple   Malas

 

St johns Wort Hypericum perforatum

Fairy Flax  Linum catharticum

Greater Birds foot Trefoil Lotus pendunculatus

plants for 2012

Cutting with an Allan scythe

I cant believe its time already to start thinking about plants for next years meadow. I want to have a really wide selection for the bees and insects. Today I started collecting seed from the plats that have gone over a  I also cleared the first island bed cut and removed the hay and flowers and planted the plugs of Bloody Cranesbill. I sowed the seeds only 4 weeks ago they came through in a couple of days and I picked them out  into 2" pots when I looked yesterday they had filled their pots with roots so they had to be planted out.The weather has been so dry I had to put the sprinkler on for about 4 hours so I could remove the plug of soil and plant the little plants.I finally finished planting at 9.35 pm . No wonder I'm not getting time for painting . (my second love is botanical painting)

Hay loaded onto trailer to be given to the hens to scratch through

All cleared away and ready to plant

Bloody Cransbill Geranium sanguineum plugs ready to go in

New additions for 13th July

Yellow knapweed - Centaurea macrocephala

Meadow Sweet Filipendulam ulmaria

 

Greater Knapweed   Centaurea scabiosa

Dyers  Rocket Weld Reseda luteola

Things I've never see before

Bifid Hemp-nettle (Galeopsis bifida)
I am truly amazed that even after five years of  returning my little piece of meadow back to wild flowers that there are plants emerging that not only have I not planted but this one I have never even heard of . There are quite a few of them and they must have been lying dormant for decades just waiting for their moment perhaps the harsh winter and very dry spring was the trigger that they had long awaited

This clump of Echium is the favourite stopping place for insects wanting their nectar fix .I'll be making sure I collect plenty of seed to ensure the clump is bigger in future years It stands almost 5 feet tall and has been full of flowers for weeks. It looks as if its going to go on producing its nectar rich flower for a good while longer yet.

Bumble bee

Honey bee

Small Tortoise Shell Butterfly