Wild Flower Twitching.
I recently received communication from a member who lives in North Yorkshire asking to accompany me in the Waveney area of Suffolk where I live and work for a day,s plant twitching. As nature guiding is one side of my Ecology consultancy business I offered him a day on 7th September 2010. Thankfully after the previous evenings rain and strong winds we met in fine weather outside my home. A week before I was sent a letter with a considerable wish list and thought that we could get a few.
First we walked onto Beccles Common to see the abundant Impatiens parviflora (Small Balsam) Still in flower with many fruits, which pleased my guest as he studied the features and took a voucher. Next we looked at the fruits of Rosa pimpinellifolia x R.canina = R. hibernica. (Hybrid Rose) first located in 2001 by The Lowestoft Field Club. Passing a few non flowering Rubus laciniatus. (Cut leaved Bramble) we walked on to the car and off to Weybread Churchyard for the large patch of Aristolochia clematis (Birthwort.) and then to Mettingham Churchyard for several Dipsacus pilosus (Lesser Teasel)
Our next stop was a bit scary as it was a small plant growing in a road train right on the brow of Haddiscoe Road Bridge in Norfolk (just) Our target here was a local rarity Brassica juncea. (Chinese Mustard.) there were both flowers and fruits showing the parents. Which is derived from the hybrid between B. nigra x rapa.
Buddlija globosa (Orange Ball) was on my new friends list and the very big specimen in a Corton hedgerow just North of Lowestoft which sadly produced nothing but vegetative characters for my guest.
Now one thing that the WFS is good at is locating good places for alien plants and garden escapes along with some new arrivals. From my Kessingland meeting I was able to show my fellow member Ulmus x vegata (Huntingdon Elm) Allium neapolitanum (Neaploitan Garlic) Both Conyza canadensis (Canadian Fleabane) and the new arrival in Kessingland C. sumatrensis (Guernsey Fleabane) a surprise not seen on my previous field trip was
Callistephus chinensis (Chinese Aster) growing in a pavement crack along Church Road in Kessingland.
It was not what I normally do on a Nature guiding trip but it was good to travel about and tick off old favourites and even find very new ones.
Colin Jacobs.
