Green-winged orchid Anacamptis morio
Our fourth trip of the season took the Botany Group to Leyburn Old Glebe (a flower-rich meadow) and to Ballowfield (a stream side site influenced by the lead mining history of the area. The unusually hot dry spring affected the sites very differently. At the Old Glebe, the grass was much shorter than usual; allowing the flowers to stand out beautifully. At Ballowfield, on thin poor soil, much of the vegetation was dry and burnt.
At the Old Glebe, we had hoped that the Burnt Orchid Neotinea ustulata might have appeared this year – but no luck there. However, some decent specimens of Green-winged orchid Anacamptis morio were found.
Spring Sandwort Minuartia verna
Grass-of-parnassus Parnassia palustris
In view of the hot weather, we decided to limit our visit to Barrowfield to looking at the metallophytes for which the site is renowned. Pretty pink flowers of Thrift Armeria maritima dotted the ground. A bit harder to find were the mossy cushions and starry white flowers of the Spring Sandwort Minuartia verna – many looking rather dry and sorry for themselves. In the (usually) wetter areas Pyrenean Scurvygrass Cochlearia pyrenaica was abundant and in full bloom. After a bit of searching, we found a few plants of Alpine Pennycress Noccaea caerulescens but sadly no Moonwort Botrychium lunaria or Mountain Pansy Viola lutea this year. We were however pleased to find two new surprises to add to our ‘year on year’ plant list: a significant patch of Town Hall Clock Adoxa moschatellina and a leaf-rosette of Grass-of-parnassus Parnassia palustris by the stream side.
Report by Liz Beaver, photos by Pragna Unia and Jane Welsh
