Veronica serpyllifolia

Germander speedwell – Veronica chamaedrys

Our woods and hedges are full of greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea), a fragile plant that avoids the sunlight if it can and leans on the foliage around it for support.

This is black sedge (Carex nigra), also known as common sedge. It grows along the Lambrok tributary either in the shallow water or on the bank and there is a bed of it in the woods just past the wooden bridge.

Germander speedwell (Veronica Chamaedrys) in the hedge in Brunts Field.

Pictures by Suzanne Humphries

Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale) are the commonest of our wildflowers. They grow everywhere: between our paving stones, in flowerbeds, lawns and roadside verges, and straight up through the tarmac of a well-maintained driveway.

Marsh marigold (Caltha palustris), the latest addition to our species list, is a member of the buttercup family. While its colour and the shape of its flower seem very familiar, there is a lot about this beautiful plant that is quite unusual.

Clearing trees from the new plantations and the areas affected by Ash Die-back has brought spring sunlight to the woodland floor for the first time in years.

The bluebells are out in the park’s woods and copses; come and see.

This is ground ivy (Glechoma hederacea), a little blue flower so common as to be almost invisible. It grows all over the park and flowers at any time of the year.

A picture of Cardamine pratensis sent by Ian Bushell with this message:

” . . .Milkmaid flowering on the Lambrok bank very near the boggy area. ”

Does anybody else call it milkmaid? I call it lady’s smock; is it another of those plants with many different names, like ragwort?

Tell us in the comments below if you have a different name for it.

Cardamine pratensis conservation status UK: Common and widespread