I noticed Common Cow-wheat (Melampyrum pratense)
growing in the lower part of Milner and Beestones woods a few weeks ago.
I went back today to see if I could catch them in flower
A delicate plant with yellow trumpet shaper flowers
growing in pairs from the leaf axils
When I've seen this before there have been a few scattered plants
In this wood they stretch on and on
On the far side of the wood I found some Lesser Stitchwort (Stellaria graminea)
This seems to be the last of the stitchworts to come into flower
Petals are deeply divided
The long thin stems and narrow leaves make this hard to see among the grass
A good find, that large concentration of Cow Wheat.
ReplyDeleteIt's semi-parasitic on the grass,
so maybe it will exhaust its host at this site, and dwindle in coming seasons.
The images don't do the sight justice.
ReplyDeleteI'll keep an eye on it.