and common but now extremely scarce and erratic because of agricultural herbicides.
Annual Knawel
Annual Knawel
Annual Knawel Scleranthus annuus HEIGHT to 10cm
Yellowish-green annual. Associated with dry, bare soil and arable land. FLOWERS Comprising green, pointed sepals and no petals; in clustered heads (May–Aug). FRUITS Capsules. LEAVES Narrow, pointed; in opposite pairs along the wiry stems. STATUS Locally common throughout.
Buttercup Family Ranunculaceae
Stinking Hellebore
Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus
Robust, strong-smelling perennial of woodland on calcareous soils. FLOWERS Green with purple margins, 15–30mm across, bell-shaped; in clusters (Jan–May). FRUITS Dry, many-seeded and splitting. LEAVES Divided into toothed lobes; lower ones persist through winter. STATUS Local and restricted to central and S England and Wales.
Burbidge, Brinsley
Green Hellebore
Green Hellebore Helleborus viridis
Scentless perennial of woodland on calcareous soils. FLOWERS Green (including the margins) with pointed sepals but no petals; in clusters (Feb–Apr). FRUITS Dry, many-seeded and splitting. LEAVES Divided into bright green, elongate lobes; not evergreen. STATUS Local and scarce, in central and S England and Wales.
Winter Aconite
Winter Aconite Eranthis hyemalis
Attractive perennial that sometimes forms carpets on woodland floors. FLOWERS 12–15mm across, with 6 yellow sepals; on upright stems, above the leaves (Jan–Apr). FRUITS Dry, many-seeded and splitting. LEAVES Spreading (3 per stem) and each divided into 3 lobes. STATUS Introduced but widely naturalised.
Love-in-a-mist
Love-in-a-mist Nigella damascena
Upright, hairless annual, associated with disturbed ground and roadside verges. FLOWERS Comprising 5 petal-like blue sepals; solitary and terminal (June–July). FRUITS Inflated capsules. LEAVES Divided into narrow segments and arranged as a ruff below the flowers. STATUS Widely cultivated and sometimes naturalised briefly.
Marsh-marigold
Marsh-marigold Caltha palustris HEIGHT to 25cm
Widespread perennial with stout, hollow stems. Found in damp woodland, marshes and wet meadows. FLOWERS Yellow, 25–30mm across, with 5 petal-like sepals but no petals (Mar–July). FRUITS Capsules. LEAVES Kidney-shaped, shiny, up to 10cm across. STATUS Widespread and locally common, but range is contracting.
Globeflower
Globeflower Trollius europaeus
Attractive perennial of damp, upland and northern meadows. FLOWERS Spherical, 30–40mm across, with 10–15 yellow sepals; on long, upright stems (May–Aug). FRUITS Many-seeded, dry. LEAVES Palmately divided into toothed lobes. STATUS Absent from the south but very locally common from N Wales to Scotland, also NW Ireland.
Weston, Andrew
Baneberry
Baneberry Actaea spicata
Robust and hairless perennial of woodland (typically Ash) on limestone, and limestone pavements. FLOWERS White and feathery with 4–6 petals; in spikes (May–June). FRUITS Berries, green at first but ripening black. LEAVES Pinnately divided into toothed lobes. STATUS Local, restricted to N England.
