World of Blyton

More flowers now to brighten up your month. Let’s hope we get some good weather for you to go searching for them!

• Broom: The yellow broom makes a brave show when the bush is completely covered with bright-yellow, sweet-pea-like flowers. You will find it on commons or on banks. Notice the small leaves of the broom, growing in groups of three.
  

  Broom by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Yellow iris: This big, gay flower grows in or by water, and will remind you of the “flag” or iris that we grow in our gardens. Notice the pretty yellow fringe in the centre of the flower, and the tall, sword-shaped leaves.
  

  Yellow iris by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Blue bugle: Look for this plant on banks and in fields. The stem is closely covered with leaves and flowers, and can sometimes hardly be seen.  Notice that stem is pale purple, square and hollow. The flowers have no stalks, but grow in close circles round the stem.  They are usually deep blue, and are in lips, like the white dead nettle. The leaves are oval in shape, those at the bottom having stalks, those above having none.
  

  Blue bugle by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Wood spurge: This yellow-green flower is common in the woods and hedges now. Look at the curious yellow-green flowers, set among leafy bracts. The stem is often pinkish. The leaves are long and narrow.
  

  Wood spurge by http://www.bbc.co.uk

• Water crowfoot: This is a white water-buttercup, and can easily be recognised by its masses of white flowers on the surface of ponds or streams in May or June. Notice the five white petals with the orange patch. Notice also the two kinds of leaves – the flat ones on the surface of the water, the very much cut- up ones below the surface.
  

  Water crowfoot by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Early purple orchid: Look for this flower in open woods and pastures. It has red-purple flowers growing up in a spike. Each flower is made up of three red petals and three red sepals. Notice how differently shaped they are. The stalk is stout and juicy. The leaves have no stalks, and are strap-shaped, often spotted.
  

  Early purple orchid  by http://www.independent.co.uk/

• Wild rose: This beautiful, sweet-smelling little rose may be found in hedges everywhere now, spreading five white or pink silken petals to the sun. Notice the many yellow stamens, making a beautiful centre  to the flower. Notice also the prickly stem. The leaves are like those on our garden roses. The fruit is the well-known scarlet hip.
  

  Wild Rose on http://farm2.staticflickr.com/

• Foxglove: Another well-known flower, whose name means “Folk’s Glove” or “Fairy’s Glove.” The tall spire of drooping purple-pink bells stands in the woods and on banks in the summer days. The grey-green leaves are long and broad, and on the underside they are white with woolly down.
  

  Foxglove by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Dog daisy, or Ox-eye daisy: Every child knows the big white daisy that nods in the buttercup fields, its bright yellow centre showing up clearly. Notice the stiff ridged stem, and the feather-shaped straggling leaves.
  

  Dog daisy or ox-eye daisy from http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Common sorrel: This dull-red flower that sends up its pretty spires in fields and meadows every-where now, may often be found with buttercups and daisies, and is very attractive in a bowl with them. Look at the small crimson flowers, each with three petals and its own tiny stalk. There are many of them on a spike. The leaves are smooth, arrow-head-shaped, and dark green.
  

  Common sorrell from http://www.plantlife.org.uk

• Ragged robin: This flower will remind you of an untidy, red campion. It loves to grown anywhere damp. The rose-pink flowers grow on tall, rather sticky stalks, and are very much cut up, so that they appear ragged. The leaves are lance-shaped and narrow.
  

  Ragged robin from http://warehouse1.indicia.org.uk

• Field thistle and Spear thistle: We have several kinds of thistle, and most boys and girls can tell them by their prickly leaves and soft pink-purple heads. The field thistle is a common one, found in fields and waste places. It can be found flowering now, and always in later summer. Notice the leaves with their prickly margins. The flower-heads are pale purple, and are visited by many insects, as you will see. The flowers change to thistledown later.
  Look for the spear-thistle also, and notice the long spears or spines that jut out from the ends of the prickly leaves. Notice also the very spiny head, and the pretty purple flower.
  

  Field thistle from http://focusonlyme.files.wordpress.com

• Meadowsweet: This deliciously-scented plant grows by streams and in any damp, open place. The tiny, creamy-white flowers are set in big heads and spires that look lacy and frothy as they nod beside the stream. Notice the stiff red stem, and the large leaves cut up into  leaflets, with even tinier leaflets set on the leaf-stalk, between the larger ones.
  

  Meadowsweet from http://wildflowerfinder.org.uk

• Hedge parsley: The hedge parsley embroiders banks and hedges  with its clusters of tiny white flowers that grow on green spokes which will remind you of the ribs of an umbrella. Notice the fern-like leaves, very much cut-up, dark green, and hairy.
  

  Hedge parsley from http://www.reallywildflowers.co.uk

• Cow parsnip, or hogweed: This is another common “umbrella” plant, growing by the wayside anywhere. The small white flowers grow in clusters at the end of the “umbrella” ribs, as in the hedge parsley. Notice the glossy, smooth hollow stalk. The pale-green leaves will remind you of rose leaves.
  

  Cow parsnip or hogsweed from http://wildflowerfinder.org.uk

•  Scentless mayweed: This daisy is very common everywhere in the fields. It will remind you of the dog daisy, but the leaves are very different, for they are so much cut up that they seem no more than a tangle of green hairs or threads. Notice the queer thimble-like shape of the mayweed when the flower begins to wither. The white outer petals droop down, and the yellow middle raises itself up like a thimble.
  

  Scentless mayweed by http://www.rspb.org.uk

• Poppy: Everyone knows the scarlet poppy. You will find it dancing in the corn-fields and by the wayside. Notice its four silken petals, the ring of the black headed stamens, and the green knob in the middle which will later turn brown and hold the ripening seeds. The poppy has two green sepals when in bud, but you will see these drop off when the flower opens The leaves are cut up into fingers.
  

  Poppy by http://imgs.photo4me.com

• Field convolvulus, or bindweed: Look for the pretty pink or white bells of the bindweed in fields and waste places, or as a weed in the garden. Notice the queer way the bud is twisted and the curious ray-like markings inside the flower-bell. Look at the twisted stem of the bindweed. It binds itself tightly to any nearby plant, twisting its stem round and round it. The arrow-head-shaped leaves are dark and shiny.
  

  Bindweed by http://wildflowerfinder.org.uk

And that is it for June’s flowers! I hope you have some luck finding one of these flowers. There are  a lot to be looking out for, but then the weather should be a lot nicer and better by now.

So Happy Hunting!

We’ve had some perfect weather for flowers, warm and wet with a dash of sunshine! So let’s get looking shall we?

It’s definitely time to start looking for those flowers!

And with that said, these are the flowers you need to be looking out for this month.

Bluebell: This flower does not really need describing, for it is as well-known as the daisy. Its stalk of beautiful blue bells rises from the bulb, and fills the woods with fragrance. Count the six petals, joined into a bell. Notice the long, strap-shaped leaves, which look as if someone had folded them in half, for they have a crease down the middle.

Bluebells from http://www.lucypaintbox.org.uk

Dandelion: Another well-known flower, with its big golden heads showing on the bank and way-side. The big head is made up of a great many florets in the form of flower-tubes. Pick a dandelion, and pull out one of the strap-shaped florets. Notice the toothed leaves, which give the plant its name – dandelion means dents-de-lion, lion’s teeth. Notice to the hollow stalk, with a milky juice inside. Watch for the beautiful “clocks” that are the seed heads of the ripened flower.

Dandelion flower and seed head. From http://www.publicdomainpictures.net

Cowslip: We all know the dancing cowslip, nodding so gaily in the wind on the hillside and in the fields. Look at the loose cluster of lemon-coloured flowers at the top of the stout stalk, each set in a pale-green calyx cup. Notice the nick in the outer edge of the petals and the bright red-orange spot at the base. The leaves will remind you of the primrose’s for they are crinkled all over.

Cowslip by http://www.bridiehall.com

Meadow buttercup: There is no mistaking the golden, polished cup of this meadow buttercup, which so often makes a carpet of gold in our fields. Notice the deeply cut-up leaves, covered with soft hairs.

Meadow buttercup by http://www.hawk-conservancy.org

Red clover: Look at the pinkish-purple heads, and notice that they are made up of thirty or more tiny flowers that belong to the sweet-pea family. If you pull out one or two, you will see the resemblance to the sweet-pea. Notice the trefoil leaves – that is, the leaves growing in groups of three. Tre means three, and foil means leaf – trefoil, three-leafed.

Red clover on Wikipedia

Scarlet pimpernel: A small plant, growing by the wayside. It is easily known because of its bright scarlet flowers. They have fine round petals. Notice the small, oval leaves. Turn them over and see the little dots on the under surface. This flower shuts its petals up in  bad weather.

Scarlet pimpernel by http://4.bp.blogspot.com

Tufted vetch: We have many of these little sweet-pea-like flowers, called vetches. The tufted vetch is one of the commonest. See if you can find it growing in the hedge. It has a tuft of bright-blue or purple flowers, shaped like tiny sweet-peas. Notice the pea-pods that grow when the flower has faded, each with a curly tail. Notice the pairs of strap-like leaflets, and the tendrils that help the plant climb upwards.

Tufted vetch by http://www.plantlife.org.uk

Heart’s-ease, or wild pansy: This is a very easy plant to know because it is exactly like  miniature pansy. It grows in the fields or by the wayside. It has five petals, two of purple and three of orange-yellow. The leaves are oval-shaped with wavy edges.

Wild pansy or heart’s-ease by http://www.organicsoul.com

Red campion, white campion: The red campion likes a damp place to grow in, so look for it by the streams or in ditches, or in shady hedges. It is a tall flower deep rose-red in colour. There are five petals, deeply nicked, lying flat at the top of the sepal-cup. Notice the red, sticky stem, and the leaves that grow opposite one another in pairs, set close to the stem.

The white campion is much the same as the red, but has white flowers.

Red campion by http://www.pyb.co.uk

Ribwort plantain: This is the flower that boys and girls play “soldiers” with. I expect that you know how to play. You pick the stout plantain head, and then try and strike off the head of your friends plantain with it. If you fail, your friend has a turn with his. The flowers are set close together in brown, cone-shaped heads. You may see the yellow heads of the stamens standing out of this brown head. Notice the narrow pointed leaves, growing in a circle from the root. Look at the long “ribs” running up the leaves. These “ribs” give the plant its name of ribwort.

Ribwort by http://s0.geograph.org.uk

Yarrow, or milfoil: Look for this plan in fields or waste places. Although you might not think so, it belongs to the daisy family. Look at the clusters of flowers at the top of the stiff woody stem – they are just like tiny white daisies. Notice the very much cut-up leaves – they are so much divided that the leaf seems as feathery as a fern.

Yarrow by http://www.flowersociety.org 

And there you have them. May’s flowers. Sorry they are a bit late, but things got in the way. However, have fun trying to find these beauties and I’ll be back with June’s flowers soon!