Tag Archives: #Butterfly

Common Honeysuckle, a look at Lonicera periclymenum, one of our most Beloved Hedgerow Climbers

Common Honeysuckle, Lonicera periclymenum, also known as Woodbine, is one of those plants that easily goes unnoticed until it bursts into flower, filling the air with a heady, sweet perfume that draws you in as you pass. Twisting and twining its way through our hedgerows, these tubular blooms shift from creamy white to yellowish-pink throughContinue reading “Common Honeysuckle, a look at Lonicera periclymenum, one of our most Beloved Hedgerow Climbers”

The Small Heath Butterfly and its Reliance on Grazed Pastureland

The Small Heath butterfly, Coenonympha pamphilus, a diminutive member of the Nymphalidae family, is a widespread yet increasingly vulnerable species across the British Isles. In Northwest England, this unassuming butterfly thrives in a variety of open, grassy habitats, but its populations are closely tied to specific ecological conditions, particularly those shaped by traditional land managementContinue reading “The Small Heath Butterfly and its Reliance on Grazed Pastureland”

The Ecological Importance of Urban Gardens

Introduction Our street is much like any other in the UK, it’s in the middle of a largish housing estate, built in the 70’s and situated between boxy brick council houses built in the 50’s and a grey, rabbit-warren like concrete council estate built in the 80’s, known locally as ‘Lego-land’. Along our street sitsContinue reading “The Ecological Importance of Urban Gardens”

The Greater Butterfly Orchid

The Greater Butterfly Orchid, Platanthera chlorantha is a herbaceous perennial that typically grows to a height of 20 to 60 cm. It is easily recognised by its pair of broad, shiny, elliptical leaves at the base, with smaller, lanceolate leaves higher up the stem. The plant’s flower spike, which blooms from May to July, bearsContinue reading “The Greater Butterfly Orchid”

Comfrey

Comfrey, Symphytum officinale, also known as ‘knitbone’ is a hardy perennial herb, native to the British Isles and thriving in our temperate climate, especially in the damp, fertile soils often found along riverbanks, ditches, and meadows. From late spring to early autumn this attractive-looking wildflower produces clusters of delicate tubular flowers, typically in shades ofContinue reading “Comfrey”

Greater Stitchwort

We’re lucky where we live, in that we have access to the countryside only 100 yards from our front door, you need only walk round the corner, cross the road and you’re on a stretch of Common Land called Hapton Moor. I walk up there at least once a week and almost always find somethingContinue reading “Greater Stitchwort”

The Upland Collection

Here is a list of some of the articles I have published which fall under the broad category of ‘moorland’ or ‘uplands’, it’s by no means exhaustive as there will be some I’ve missed out, some which overlap other themes and others which sit on the fringes. I hope you find it a useful and/orContinue reading “The Upland Collection”