Botanical Name CR-CY 24

frockflossamphire

Flowers

Above 4 small photos were taken by Ron or Christine Foord last century.

12 x 24
(30 x 60)

Umbellifer 2 Family

frockfolsamphire

Foliage

Soil - On rocky coasts and cliffs or more rarely shingle or sand by the sea in the South and West England and Wales, and Ireland.

Plant Type - Squat bushy grey hairless perennial with solid stems up to a foot (30cm) high.

Foliage - Grey thick fleshy leaves cut into narrow untoothed leaflets.

Flower Colour in Month(s). Seed - Yellowish-white in July-September followed by corky, olive-green to purplish fruit.

Comment - Leaves make a good pickle.

A fleshy perennial herb of spray-drenched rock crevices and ledges on sea-cliffs, coastal rocks and on stabilised shingle; also in maritime grassland and artificial habitats like harbour walls and stone sea defences. It appears indifferent to soil reaction, being found on many rock types from chalk and limestone to granite. Lowland.

Native in Western Europe(except in Ireland and Belgium), Mediterranean Europe, Bulgaria and Soviet Union.
The fleshy leaves are sometimes pickled.

frockforsamphire

Form

Other photos including buds and leaves in Rock Samphire page.

rockfflossamphirebritishflora1

Flowers from Isle of Wight. Photo from BritishFlora

See other photos of
Crithmum maritimum
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

ONLINE ENCYCLOPAEDIA  THE UMBELLIFERAE
(CARROT/PARSLEY) FAMILY OF THE BRITISH ISLES
Edition - Interactive Launched 01:08:2002 43 species described. By Mr James Miles Burton.
A comprehensive online guide to the botany, biology, nomenclature, ecology, chemistry, pharmacology, edibility folklore of British Umbelliferae. Umbelliferae Of The British Isles, 2nd edition, 2000. 1st edition 1998.
Also, Interactive Guide to Artemisia, Wild in the British Isles.

rockfforsamphirebritishflora

Form from Isle of Wight. Photo from BritishFlora

Autumn Crocus
(Autumnal Crocus,
Naked Autumn Crocus,
Autumn-flowering Crocus,
Saffron)

autumnfflocrocus

Flower

Crocus is a Chaldean name meaning "saffron". In the wild, the plants are found over much of Europe, especially around the Mediterranean, in North Africa, and in Western Asia.

Crocus nudiflorus
(Crocus aphyllus,
Crocus fimbriatus, Crocus multifidus, Crocus pyrenaeus)

September-October

autumnfforcrocus

Form

Above 2 small photos were taken by Ron or Christine Foord last century

6-10 x 15
(15-25 x 38)

Iris Family

Iris Family:-
Irises are "stout hairless perennials, with narrow, sword-shaped, flat leaves. The conspicuous flowers have 3 spreading outer petals (falls), 3 more or less erect and twisted inner ones (standards), all with narrow basal portions, and 3 large and rather petal-like stigmas. In many garden Irises the falls are bearded, but our wild species are beardless. The branched tips of the styles are the crests. " from Collins Pocket Guide to Wild Flowers by David McClintock and R.S.R. Fitter assisted by Francis Rose - ISBN 0 00 219363 9 - Eleventh Impression 1978

Purple

A cormous perennial herb found naturalised in meadows, pastures, amenity grasslands and on roadsides. It spreads vegetatively by means of rhizomes. Lowland.

Native in Great Britain, Spain and France.

dcrocuspflo92nudifloruswikimediacommons

Flower

Crocus nudiflorus - El Tarter (Andorra). Photo taken: 24/09/2006
By Joan Simon, via Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository.

For herbaceous beds and shrubberies, the stronger-growing kinds can be planted in large clumps and drifts. Soil should be removed to the depth of 6 inches (15 cms) and the corms laid on the bottom of the hole at the space of an inch (2.5 cms) from each other. It is customary to plant Crocuses as edgings to borders in rather formal lines or circles, but a charming effect is produced by planting some hundreds of one kind under deciduous shrubs, or at the back of borders between clumps of strong-growing herbaceous plants that do not cover the ground with their leaves earlier than the middle of May, and thus allowing time for the Crocus leaves to mature in an open space.

The Dutch Yellow, in my opinion, never looks better than when planted in a generously planned drift, towards the back of a large border, or round the stem of a leafless Rhodendron molle, Deutzia, etc. All the florist's forms of Crocus vernus are suitable for this work, and Crocus tomasinianus once planted should be allowed to spread naturally by seed as far as it will under groups of roses or other summer-leafing shrubs. Crocus speciosus is the best of all the autumn-flowering Crocuses for wide plantings, and does not object to an occasional digging over of the bed and the consequent deep burial of the corms. Only the stronger growers should be tried in grass and none succeeds better than the forms of Crocus vernus and the Dutch Yellow. I have always advised that they should be kept separate, or at any rate the yellow planted only among white varieties; but a charming planting of irregular colonies, each of one kind, under some trees in a friend's garden taught me that if the yellow are planted in separate groups; instead of being scattered among the purples; they can be very effective.

The quality of grass differs so greatly that my rather poor success with the many species I have tried in a rough meadow need not discourage others with a finer brand of turf. I used to give bundles of rogues and mixed seedlings to Mr. Wilks to plant in his wild garden at Shirley, and in his grass they flourished and spread most delightfully. The soil there is a fine sand, and he used to say of it that it was so light that if he threw it up in the air it would never come down again, and naturally the grass on it is scanty and fine.

Where the turf is not coarse, and the ground well drained and open to sunshine, I advise planting Crocus tomasinianus, Crocus aureus, Crocus chrysanthus, Crocus sieberi, Crocus versicolor as well as Crocus vernus for spring, and Crocus kotschyanus, Crocus speciosus, Crocus nudiflorus and Crocus longiflorus for autumn."

Purple Crocus
(Spring Crocus,
Dutch Crocus)

springfflo1crocus

Flower

Crocus purpureus
(Crocus vernus,
Crocus albiflorus)

March

springfflo2crocus

Flowers

Above 4 small photos were taken by Ron or Christine Foord last century

Iris Family

springffolcrocus

Foliage

See other photos of
Crocus vernus
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Crocus vernus with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Multi-Coloured

A cormous perennial herb, well-naturalised in a wide variety of grassy habitats, especially in churchyards and amenity grasslands, and on roadside verges. Lowland.

springfforcrocus

Form

Native in Central Europe (except in Poland), Spain, France, Italy, Yugoslavia, Romania and Soviet Union.
Introduced in Britain and naturalized in meadows and pastures.


Flowers. Photo from Gee Tee See photo from Flickr Crocus vernus 'Yellow Mammoth'	Foliage. Photo from Gee Tee Click on photo from Blooming Bulb	Form. Photo from Gee Tee See photos of this corm and other Crocus vernus varieties from Northern Shade Gardening in Canada where most of his garden is in the shade or part shade due to mature trees

Single Flower. Photo from Gee Tee

"The vast array of garden hybrid crocuses start flowering in late winter and bring some welcome colour (See Colchicum/ Crocus gallery). Easily naturalized in grass or in flower beds they will take care of themselves and give a reliable show year after year.
Height 3 (8). Plant bulbs in early autumn, 3 (8) deep and 4 (10) apart in sun or part shade, in grass, under trees, in beds or rock gardens. Plant in any soil, preferably well-drained.
When grown in a lawn, leave the grass uncut until the leaves have died down.
A flock of sparrows can demolish a bed of crocuses in no time at all. Bees will also seek out the pollen on warm days. " from The Wildlife Garden Month-by-Month by Jackie Bennett. Published by David & Charles in 1993 (ISBN 0 7153 0033 4).

Crocus and Colchicum (Hardcover) by Edward A. Bowles written in 1924 is as complete about these bulbs as could be desired; and available from Amazon. This was revised in 1952 and a special edition created for the Garden Book Club in 1955 by its author, with the following excerpt:-
"The genus crocus deserves more attention than it has hitherto received in British Gardens.
Three only of its spring-flowering species have become general favourites, and there are still many good gardens in which autumnal and winter-flowering species have never been planted. Yet no other genus of hardy plants contains so many species and varieties that will flower in the open ground during the dullest months of the year.
By planting those now offered by nurserymen an unbroken succession of flowers may be obtained from mid-September until April showers bring such a wealth of other blossom that the gardener no longer needs the lowly crocus......., which the greater skill of the modern gardener, with his scree beds, properly drained rock gardens and the alpine house, should add to the number of early autumnal treasures.
The beautiful orange-yellow Crocus scharojanii and the creamy-white Crocus vallicola from the Caucasus, and some of the Eastern forms of the variable Crocus cancellatus, if successfully established in our gardens, would lengthen the Crocus season by their regular appearance early in August.
The first rains of September ought to bring up sheets of the almost blue flowers of Crocus speciosus in borders and shrubberies, as surely and as suddenly as they do the mushrooms. Any November or December morning on which the sun shines and the ground is free from snow should provide clumps of the lilac or white blossoms of Crocus laevigatus in every British garden that contains a wall, shrub or stone that can cut off the north or east wind from this fragrant species. New Year's Day will generally invite the making of a list of plants in flower if the Crocus chrysanthus, Crocus sieberi, Crocus imperati and Crocus korolkowii have been planted.
It is then a pity that in so many gardens the Crocus season only begins in the latter weeks of February with the Dutch Yellow, and ends a fortnight or so later with the garden-raised forms of Crocus vernus.
A large majority of species are hardy enough to thrive in the open, and are quite as easy to grow well as most flowers that are worth having. Any ground sufficiently well-tilled to grow a decent lettuce or onion should grow Crocuses to perfection. The best possible corner of a garden for growing a collection of Crocuses would be, to my mind, a portion of an old kitchen garden open to the south and with a wall or buildings on the north side.
Some, as for instance Crocus speciosus, Crocus pulchellus and Crocus nudiflorus in autumn, Crocus tomasinianus. Crocus aureus, Crocus vernus and others flowering in spring, can hold their own in mixed borders or shrubberies, but where choice and rare kinds are to be grown, it is safest to give up a long, narrow bed to their use. There, the leaves can mature naturally, instead of being overshadowed and choked by the growth of other plants. This too frequently happens where they are planted in rock gardens or herbaceous borders, and their owner ungratefully forgets the pleasure they gave earlier in the year when enjoying the luxurious way herbaceous plants spread over the bare spaces in late April and May. I need hardly warn the Crocus grower against plaitting the green leaves just at the time they are most active in building up the reserve of nutriment in the young corm, when the last thing one should wish is to hasten their decay and so shorten their period of usefullness.
The ideal soil would be one deeply tilled and rich in humus. It would not matter if it were somewhat heavy so long as it was well-drained, for most Crocuses like to send their roots down into rich, strong soil, if the corms are lying in a light and warm one. This means that the upper 8 or more inches should have coarse sand or sharp river grit mixed with it, and I have found it beneficial to both the plants and the grower if the corms are laid on an inch of sharp sand at planting time, and covered over with another inch-deep layer before the surface soil is replaced. It is a wonderful help at lifting time to find this well-marked stratum of sand with the corms lying in it.
Something between 4 and 6 inches seems to be the best depth for planting, but many species, especially Crocus aureus and Crocus speciosus, do not object to being much deeper.
However, as with deeply planted Tulips and Daffodils, though the plant remains vigorous very little if any increase is made. In collecting Wild Crocuses I have invariably found them unpleasantly deep, and by the number of their old tunics it was clear that they had been at that depth for some 12 or more seasons, and had never formed more than 1 corm each year. These, when grown in garden ground, multiplied rapidly by corm increase, so we may conclude that when it is desired to work up a stock of any variety it is best not to plant very deeply, and to lift the corms annually, cleaning away the old tunics and the withered portion of last year's corm from the base, if it will come away easily and without the use of force.
When a rich display of bloom is desired, the replanting can be put off till the third or even fourth year, but if it is noticed that the increase has been great enough to form congested tufts of leaves and the flowers are not as large as they should be, replanting should not be deferred beyond the following August. If planted in straight lines and liberally treated as to sand, it is an easy job to lift the dormant corms during a dry spell at the end of July or early in August, and a very pleasant one if the increase has been plentiful and the size of the new corms is satisfactory.
The autumn-flowering species should be replanted as soon as possible, as some - especially Crocus byzantinus, which prefers moist ground - begin rooting in mid-July. Spring-flowering kinds can be stored safely in a dry, cool place until October if necessary, but are safer and sounder if planted in August.
If it is necessary to plant different kinds close to one another, as in the case of new seedlings of which there are but 2 or 3 corms, it is a good plan to alternate those with well-marked differences of corm tunic, for instance, a coriaceous, or annulate form, next to one with a netted or parallel-fibred tunic. I have found this plan of great help in preventing their getting mixed at the next lifting. Slates may be buried between the plantings if it is desired to arrange the bed in square clumps instead of lines, but even with this aid to keeping clean stocks it is better that neighbouring forms should be distinct in their tunics, as then a seedling from the next division is easily detected.

Ancient Cultic Associations of Saffron Crocus written by Paghat.

colchicumpgarharlekijnrvroger1a1

Colchicum 'Harlekijn'

Overview of Late Winter's "Snow Crocuses" written by Paghat

Crosswort
(Smooth Bedstraw,
Luc na croise)

crosswortfflo1

Flower

Galium cruciata
(Cruciata laevipes,
Cruciata chersonensis)

April-June

crosswortfflos1

Flowers

Above 4 small photos were taken by Ron or Christine Foord last century

Bedstraw Family

crosswortffol1

Foliage

A perennial herb of deep, well-drained neutral or calcareous soils, typically occurring in ungrazed grassland, open scrub, hedge banks, woodland rides and edges, and on waysides. 0-550 m (Garrigill, Cumberland). Use as dye on clothing.

Native in all Europe, except in Northern Europe and Ireland.
The roots produce a red dye; used medicinally in the past.

crosswortffor1

Form

crosswortgalliumcruciatacorke Cross-wort Gallium cruciata from Wild Flowers as They Grow- Photographed by H. Essenhigh Corke, text by G. Clark Nuttall. Published by Cassell and Company, Ltd in 7 separate books between 1911 and 1914:-

The Crosswort is a plant of the hedgeside and thicket, with square, hairy stems, which appear year after year, grow to 12 or 24 inches (30 or 60 cms) in height, and die down in the autumn. They are divided into tiers, marked off at regular intervals by crosses formed of 4 green oval leaves which are stalkless. It is to these crosses that the plant owes its second name of cruciata. The leaves like the stem, are covered with long, spreading hairs.
In the higher tiers of leaf-crosses are close groups of tiny flowers, the main stem of each cluster being too short to carry them beyond the leaves, and each flower looks like a tiny yellow cross.

Cruciata laevipes is native in all Europe, except in Northern Europe and Ireland.
The roots produce a red dye; used medicinally in the past.

See other photos of
Cruciata laevipes
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cruciata laevipes with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Common Dodder
(Dodder,
Clover Dodder,
Lesser Dodder)

commonfflododder

Flower

Cuscuta epithymum

commonfflosdodder

Flowers

The 4 small photos above were taken by Ron or Christine Foord

Bindweed Family

commonffoldodder

Foliage

Pink A-G

Heath and Mountains (locally frequent, especially on heaths and downs, mainly in England and Wales)

commonffordodder

Form

Native in most of Europe, except in Ireland and Iceland.

See other photos of
Cuscuta epithymum
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cuscuta epithymum with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Greater Dodder
(Large Dodder,
European Dodder)

Cuscuta europaea

Bindweed Family

Pink A-G

Rivers (very local and decreasing, in shadier places by rivers, especially the Thames, Wey and Bristol Avon, not in Ireland).

Native in most of Europe, except in Portugal, Ireland and Iceland.
Commonly parasitic on willows, alders, nettles, hops, mints, etc.

See other photos of
Cuscuta europaea
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cuscuta europaea with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Sowbread
(Hardy Cyclamen,
Ivy-leaf Cyclamen)

Cyclamen hederifolium
(Cyclamen europaeum,
Cyclamen neapolitanum)

August-September

Primrose Family

Pink A-G

An aestivating long-lived perennial commonly cultivated in parks and gardens and reproducing by seed in dry, shaded positions, often under the canopy and against the roots of large trees. The self-fertile flowers arise laterally from initially leafless tubers at the soil surface, and seeds can be carried hundreds of metres, principally by ants.

Native in France, Czechoslovakia, Italy, Yugoslavia, Albania, Greece and Turkey.
Introduced and naturalized in hedgebanks and woods in a number of localities in England and Wales of Great Britain, very rare.

See other photos of
Cyclamen hederifolium
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cyclamen hederifolium with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Bermuda Grass
(Bermudagrass,
Bahama Grass,
Creeping Finger Grass)

Cynodon dactylon
(Capriola dactylon,
Cynodon aristiglumis,
Cynodon incompletus,
Panicum dactylon)

Grass Soft
Bromes 1 Family

A mat-forming perennial herb, found on eroding fore-dunes in dry sandy places and short grassland by the sea, including lawns and sea-front promenades, and inland on lawns and roadside verges. It is also found around docks, on rubbish tips and as a casual from wool shoddy and other sources. Lowland. Weed in USA.

Native in much of Europe, except in Northern Europe, Ireland and Poland.

See other photos of
Cynodon dactylon
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cynodon dactylon with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Green Hound's Tongue
(Green-leaved houndstongue)

greenfflohoundstongue

Flower

Cynoglossum germanicum, (Cynoglossum sylvaticum)

May-July

greenffloshoundstongue

Flowers

Borage Family

greenffolhoundstongue

Foliage

The 4 small photos above were taken by Ron or Christine Foord

Purple

A biennial or short-lived perennial herb of glades in or margins of deciduous woodland, usually Fagus or Quercus; sometimes also occurring in hedge banks. It is found mainly on calcareous, freely-draining, loamy soils.

greenfforhoundstongue

Form

Native and widespread in Europe, except in the north

Hound's Tongue
(Gypsyflower,
Gypsy-flower,
Hound's-tongue)

houndstonguefflo

Flower

Cynoglossum officinale

June-August

houndstonguefflos

Flowers

Borage Family

The 3 small photos above were taken by Ron or Christine Foord

Red

A biennial herb of disturbed ground, growing mostly on dry, often base-rich soils. Habitats include coastal dunes, shingle, open grassland, woodland margins and clearings, field edges, cleared land and gravelly waste. It is unpalatable to grazing animals and is often frequent on disturbed ground by rabbit warrens.

houndstongueffor

Form

Native in all Europe (except in Portugal and Turkey): introduced in Iceland.
Used medicinally in the past.

See other photos of
Cynoglossum officinale
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cynoglossum officinale with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Crested Dogstail
(Weide-Kammgras),
Crested Dogstail Grass,
Crested Dog's-tail,
Crested Dog-tail)

Used within lifecycle of Butterfly Small Heath,

crestedfflodogstail

Flower

Cynosurus cristatus

June-August

crestedfflosdogstail

Flowers

Grass 1 Family

The 2 small photos above were taken by Ron or Christine Foord

A short-lived perennial herb growing in a wide variety of grasslands, particularly short and heavily grazed swards. It grows in a range of neutral to base-rich, fairly well-drained or damp soils, avoiding only the extremes of base-status, waterlogging, drought and disturbance.

Native throughout Europe.

See other photos of
Cynosurus cristatus
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cynosurus cristatus with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Brown Cyperus
(Brown Flat-sedge,
Brown Galingale,
Black Cyperus,
Brown Flatsedge)

Cyperus fuscus

Wild Flower
...Flower Shape and Landscape Uses

Sedge Rush-like Family

An annual of moist, open disturbed ground around the margins of ponds and by ditches, often on ground subject to winter-flooding. The substrate may be peaty, muddy or stony but humus-rich. Seed may not be set in cool summers. It is very rare by a few muddy ponds in Southern England, much increasing there in dry seasons.

Native in most of Europe, except in Ireland, Iceland, Norway and Finland.

See other photos of
Cyperus fuscus
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cyperus fuscus with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Sedge: Rush-Like Family are "unbranched grass-like or rush-like perennials, very rarely annuals, wiith unstalked leaves usually linear but sometimes reduced to sheaths. Flowers minute, generally grouped in spikelets, with the petals and sepals reduced to bristles, and often with a scale-like bract (glume) at their base. Several spikelets may form a flower-head. The anthers often hang out as tufts of bright yellow. Fruit a nutlet. Members of the Sedge Family differ from Rushes and Woodrushes in having no petals or sepals in their flowers, which are often separetly male and female. From Grasses they can be told by the stems being often 3-sided and never hollow; the leaves not being jointed at their junction on the stem (where there are therefore no knots) with their sheaths, which are usually closed. " from Collins Pocket Guide to Wild Flowers by David McClintock and R.S.R. Fitter assisted by Francis Rose - ISBN 0 00 219363 9 - Eleventh Impression 1978

Galingale
(Sweet Galingale)

Cyperus longus

September

Sedge Rush-like Family

A rhizomatous perennial herb of marshes and wet pastures near the coast, and sometimes in base-rich flushes on sea-cliffs. It also occurs on pond margins and in ditches inland, where it is usually planted. Reproduction is through vigorous rhizomatous spread, and it may not set seed in Britain.

Native in most of Europe, except in Northern Europe, Ireland, Belgium, Holland, Poland and Czechoslovakia.
Used for paper-making and basket-weaving in the U.S.A.

See other photos of
Cyperus longus
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Lady's Slipper Orchid
(Lady's Slipper,
Lesser Yellow Lady's Slipper,
Lady's-slipper,
Lady's-slipper Orchid)

Cypripedium calceolus
(Cypripedium calceolus L. ssp. parviflorum)

May-June, not flowering every year

Orchid 3 Family

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cypripedium calceolus with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

Multi-Coloured

A rhizomatous perennial herb found on well-drained calcareous soils derived from limestone, in herb-rich grassland or, formerly, in open woodland. Plants are long-lived but seed-set may be poor. Generally lowland, but upper altitudinal limit unknown.

Native in much of Europe, except in Portugal, Ireland, Belgium, Holland, Iceland, Denmark, Turkey and Bulgaria.

See other photos of
Cypripedium calceolus
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

These photos were taken by Ron or Christine Foord last century.


Flower	Flower	Foliage	Form

Flower	Flower	Foliage	Form

Flower	Flower	Flower	Flower with Stem

Broom
(Scotch Broom,
Broomtops,
Common Broom,
Scotch Broom)

Used within lifecycles of Butterfly Green Hairstreak,
Butterfly Silver-studded Blue,

broomfflo

Flower

Sarothamnus scoparius
(Cytisus scoparius)

May-June

broomfflos

Flowers

broomffol

Foliage

The 4 small photos above were taken by Ron or Christine Foord

96 x 96
(250 x 250)

Peaflower Family

See other photos of
Cytisus scoparius
from freenatureimages.eu of the Saxifraga Foundation.

Gallery of Photos/Illustrations, Common Name and Synonym of
Cytisus scoparius with
its distribution in USA and Canada from
Flora of USA and Canada.

broomffor

Form

C. scoparius subsp. scoparius is an erect shrub of sandy acidic soils, on heaths, open woodland, railway banks, stony riversides and, particularly, on roadside banks and verges where it may often be planted. The prostrate subsp. maritimus grows on western sea-cliffs.

Native in much of Europe, except in Iceland, Finland, Albania, Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria.
A drug, obtained from the twigs, is used medicinally for heart and respiratory conditions. The plant is poisonous to livestock. The branches are used for brooms, thatching, and screens; the bark has been used to make rope and also for tanning.

Broom (Cytisus scoparius) and Bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) are both very versatile and can be used in flower arranging both in their young stages and after drying or preservation. See Chapter 5 Dried and Preserved Materials

broomsarothamnusscopariuscorke Broom Sarothamnus scoparius from Wild Flowers as They Grow- Photographed by H. Essenhigh Corke, text by G. Clark Nuttall. Published by Cassell and Company, Ltd in 1912:-

Blossoms of pure gold form patches of brilliance on rocky hillsides and sandy heath.
The green leaves play such an insignificant part on the branches, for the Broom is one of the so-called "switch plants", and, in these, green tissue is developed on the thin, rod-like stems at the expense of the leaves. The leaves themselves consist of 3 minute leaflets lying, stalkless, close upon the stem on the upper part of the twigs; lower down we find they have short stalks, and they represent a quite insufficient amount of green tissue to carry on the necessary work of the shrub. We discover that in the stem this deficiency is made good by the presence of green tissue which connects the epidermis with the channels in the centre up which foodstuffs are carried. In furrows along the stem, too, stomata, or little organs which regulate the water supply of the plant, are to be found, these organs being usually only present on green leaves. Therefore, we have the stem as co-worker with the leaves in building up the plant's tissues, and supplementing their deficiences.
It is of the usual butterfly shape, with a large upstanding "standard" petal, 2 small "wing" petals having a blunt tooth at their base, and 2 petals which together form the "keel" of the flower, and which have a swelling and corresponding tooth to interlock with the wings; they are also attached to the rest of the flower by a mere apology for a claw.

"Plant container-grown specimens in autumn or early spring in any any well-drained soil in full sun, within a shrub border. Brooms tend to be short-lived and old bushes do not respond to pruning, so should be discarded after 6 or 7 years. The yellow flowers last for up to 2 months and are an excellent pollen for bees." from The Wildlife Garden Month-by-Month by Jackie Bennett. Published by David & Charles in 1993 (ISBN 0 7153 0033 4).

UKButterflies Larval Foodplants website page lists the larval foodplants used by British butterflies. The name of each foodplant links to a Google search. An indication of whether the foodplant is a primary or secondary food source is also given.

Please note that the Butterfly you see for only a short time has grown up on plants as an egg, caterpillar and chrysalis for up to 11 months, before becoming a butterfly. If the plants that they live on during that time are removed, or sprayed with herbicide, then you will not see the butterfly.

Topic - Wildlife on Plant Photo Gallery.

Some UK native butterflies eat material from UK Native Wildflowers and live on them as eggs, caterpillars (Large Skipper eats False Brome grass - Brachypodium sylvaticum - for 11 months from July to May as a Caterpillar before becoming a Chrysalis within 3 weeks in May) chrysalis or butterflies ALL YEAR ROUND.
Please leave a small area in your garden for wildflowers to grow without disturbance throughout the year for the benefit of butterflies, moths and other wildlife who are dependant on them.
Butterfly
Usage of Plants
by Egg, Caterpillar, Chrysalis and Butterfly

Topic -
Plant Photo Galleries for Wildflowers

There are 180 families in the Wildflowers of the UK and they have been split up into 22 Galleries to allow space for up to 100 plants per gallery.

Each plant named in each of the Wildflower Family Pages may have a link to:-

its Plant Description Page in its Common Name in one of those Wildflower Plant Galleries and will have links
to external sites to purchase the plant or seed in its Botanical Name,
to see photos in its Flowering Months and
to read habitat details in its Habitat Column.

you know which family it belongs to, use
WILD FLOWER FAMILY PAGE MENU
(o)Adder's Tongue
Amaranth
the remainder of this Family list is in the extreme left hand table.

You know its Botanical Name, use
...Brown Botanical Names (see complete botanical name alphabetical link list in the previous table)

You know its Common Name, use
...Cream Common Names (see complete common name alphabetical link list in the previous table)
or use the
Colour Wheel Gallery .

If you know its name, use
Wild Flower Plant Index a-h,
Wild Flower Plant Index i-p or
Wild Flower Plant Index q-z

Which wild flowers are there, with their flower shape and wildflower plant, use

Each of the 17 Flower Colour Comparison Pages compares the wildflowers with that flower colour in the top section using the thumbnails of the ones that I have. This is followed by a list of all the Wildflowers of the UK that have that same flower colour. Then, in the right hand table is the list of Wildflowers of the UK with that habitat as shown below:-

White A-D
and
Habitats of Saltmarshes, Beaches, Rocks and Cliff Tops

White E-P
and
Other Habitats

White Q-Z
and
Number of Petals

Cream
and
Coastal Sandy Shores and Dunes

Yellow A-G
and
Pollinator

Yellow H-Z
and
Poisonous Plants

Orange
and
Habitat of Hedgerows and Road Verges

Red
and
Habitat of Pinewoods

Pink A-G
and
Habitats of Lakes, Canals and Rivers

Pink H-Z
and
Habitats of Marshes, Fens and Bogs

Mauve
and
Habitat of Grassland - Acid, Neutral or Chalk

Purple
and
Habitats of Old Buildings and Walls

Blue
and
Flower Legend

Green
and
Habitat of Broad-leaved Woods

Brown
and
Food for Butterfly / Moth

Multi-Coloured
and
Habitats of Heaths and Moors

Shrub and Small Tree
and
Habitats of River Banks and Other Freshwater Margins

Seed 1
and
Scented Flower, Foliage or Root

Seed 2
and
Story of Their Common Names

Non-Flower Plants and
Non-Flowering Plant Use

Introduction
and
Edible Plant Parts

Site Map
and
Use of Plant

The links for the above are at the top of the previous table.

You know which habitat it lives in,
use
Wild Flowers on
Acid Soil Habitat Table,
on Calcareous
(Chalk) Soil,
on Marine Soil,
on Neutral Soil,
is a Fern,
is a Grass,
is a Rush, or
is a Sedge

Wild Flower Family Page

The families within "The Pocket Guide to Wild Flowers" by David McClintock & R.S.R. Fitter, Published in 1956 are not in Common Name alphabetical order and neither are the common names of the plants detailed within each family. These families within that book will have their details described as shown in each row of the Botanical Names Gallery and the Common Name Gallery starting from page 1 in February 2017 until all the families have been completed on page 307 in June 2022.

The information in the above book is back-referenced to the respective page in "Flora of the British Isles" by A.R. Clapham of University of Sheffield,
T.G. Tutin of University College, Leicester and
E.F. Warburg of University of Oxford printed by Cambridge at the University Press in 1952 for each plant in all the families.

The following article about flash-flooding caused by concreting over front gardens by Janice Turner in her Notebook was published by The Times on Thursday July 1 2021:-

"Walking down a pretty street I'd always admired for its front gardens with wooden gates and well-tended flower beds, I noticed men at work laying concrete slabs. With a power point being installed too, it was clear the garden was being paved to charge an electric car.
In London, with an ultra low emission zone extended to the suburbs from October, many people are busy switching vehicles. With fears that even hybrids will soon be verboten, most have bought electric. But this creates a problem: running cables from house o pavement is an illegal trip hazard and, as yet, not enough lamposts have been adapted into charging stations.
So how many front gardens will be concreted over to create private power sources? A 2015 study by the Royal Horticultural Society noted that 1 in 4 front gardens had been paved, mainly to avoid parking fees. The result was more flash-flooding, higher urban temperatures and less biodiversity and opportunity for birds to feed. Plus it makes neighbourhoods ugly and monochrome. Now more gardens will be dug up, this time because the owners aspire to be green."

"Mon, 27 Nov 06
Britain is now building the smallest homes in Europe, it seems. A recent think-tank report shows most of Europe builds houses of an average 100 sq m, while here in the UK fresh data from Wolsey Securities shows the national average plot size decreased a further 0.2% last month to 968 sq ft. (89.9 sq m.)" from Home.co.uk.
A new house is approximately 31 x 31 feet, which would fit into my front garden.

"The length of a compact car is about 14.5 to 15 feet and measures about 5.5 to almost 6 feet wide." from reference.
Allowing 2 feet around the car for access, then the drive becomes 19 feet x 10 feet (570 x 300 cms). 2 inches (5cm) of rain falling onto this 5.70 x 3.00 concrete drive is 0.855 cubic metres of water. Modern contractors only dig a 1 cubic metre sump for this 2 inch (5cm) depth of rainwater per occasion over their new drives. If the drive is larger, then the sump will fill up and overflow onto the public road. If the subsoil is clay, then no matter it's size, it will become full of rainwater and new rain will overfill it. The only way it will reduce the stored water is for it to be absorbed into the clay. Clay can absorb 40% of its volume before it turns from a solid to a liquid. So what happens is the clay expands and the house gets subsidence. Then, the excess rainwater goes into the storm drains and that is what causes the flash-flooding mentioned in The Times article. Remember that the rainwater falling on the roof also goes into this stormdrain.
"Many storm drainage systems drain untreated storm water into rivers or streams." from wikipedia.

The rainwater that used to fall on that plot and soak into the ground, now mostly goes into a storm drain, then a river and then the sea, so we lose that rainwater for it to be used as a supply of water to the household. So, the more you cover the ground with concrete motorways, roads, houses, and other buildings the less water will be going into reservoirs to be used for humans as shown by my Drinking Water depri-vation in Medway article.

Raw Sewage is discharged into rivers (more than 200,00 times in 2019) and the sea (2,900 occasions onto English and Welsh beaches in a year) across the UK and Ireland. The Environment Agency published full data on raw sewage discharges last year, showing a 37% year-on-year increase: 3.1m hours of human effluent flows, pumped via storm drains into English waters in some 400,000 occasions.
Because you do not keep your own rainwater on your own property, then it either overflows your soakaway and goes into the road and down a storm drain or the water is directed into your downpipe from your roof and then into the same stormdrain. This then overloads the system. Also, if you keep on building, but do not provide the necessary upgrade to the sewage system, then that causes the same problem. You should not go anywhere near the beach or any river in Great Britain.

"The oxygen you breathe to keep you alive has mostly been produced by plants. A 25 feet x 25 feet lawn can produce enough oxygen for you to keep breathing each year.
A car driven 60 miles will consume the same amount of oxygen that a mature beech tree produces in 1 year, creating more Carbon Dioxide. Increasing Carbon Dioxide increases the heat in the atmosphere and creates Climate Change. The increase in temperature will raise sea level to drown many acres of coastal areas around the world within the next 30 years, including my house.

Green Solution: Use Cedadrive Stabilisation system instead of concrete slabs for drive area. Fill it with Heicom Tree Sand, water it, sow wildflower meadow mixture Barflora Flower Meadow and retop with same sand. Then in the autumn, mow it once and have something that provides you with oxygen as well as hard standing for your car.
This Cedadrive could occupy the whole of your front garden and thus keep all the rainwater that falls on it as well.
If you put the same system on your back garden, then maintenance time is minimal, small children and pets can play on it, and you can have table/chairs and barbecue being supported by it.

Plants used by the Butterflies follow the Plants used by the Egg, Caterpillar and Chrysalis as stated in
A Butterfly Book for the Pocket by Edmund Sandars.
Published by Oxford University Press London: Humphrey Milford in 1939.

and

The Butterflies of Britain & Ireland New Revised Edition by Jeremy Thomas & Richard Lewington.
Published by Bloomsbury Natural Hstory in 2016. ISBN 978 0 95649 026 1.

Plant Name

Butterfly Name

Egg/ Caterpillar/ Chrysalis/ Butterfly

Plant Usage

Plant Usage Months

Alder Buckthorn

Brimstone

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg under leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

10 days in May-June
28 days.
12 days.

Aspen

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May
9 days in June.

Black Medic

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats buds and flowers.

Base of food plant.

-
-
Spend winter at the base of the food plant. They resume feeding in March.
2 weeks

Chalk-Hill Blue

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg at base of plant.
Eats leaves.
---

Late August-April
April-June
1 Month

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats buds and flowers.

Base of food plant.

-
-
Spend winter at the base of the food plant. They resume feeding in March.
2 weeks

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg laid on underside of leaflets or bracts.
Eats leaves.
---

7 days in June.

32 days in June-July.
July-May.

Bitter Vetch

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg laid on underside of leaflets or bracts.
Eats leaves.
---

7 days in June.

32 days in June-July.
July-May.

Borage

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid under the leaf or on top of the flower.
Eats leaves, then before pupating it eats the bloom and leaves of the pansies.
---

7 days in August.

23 days in August-September.

3 weeks in September

Bramble

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Buckthorn

Buckthorn -
Alder Buckthorn and Common Buckthorn

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Brimstone

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg under leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

10 days in May-June.

28 days.
12 days.

Burdocks

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

2 weeks
7-11days
7-11 days

Cabbages - ELarge White eats all cruciferous plants, such as cabbages, mustard, turnips, radishes, cresses, nasturtiums, wild mignonette and dyer's weed

Large White

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

40-100 eggs on both surfaces of leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

May-June and August-Early September. 4.5-17 days.
30-32 days
14 days for May-June eggs, or overwinter till April

Cabbages

Small White

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

May-June and August. 7 days.
28 days
21 days for May-June eggs, or overwinter till March

Cabbages:-
Charlock,
Cuckoo Flower (Lady's Smock),
Hedge-Mustard,
Garlic-Mustard,
Yellow Rocket (Common Winter-Cress),
Watercress

Green-veined White

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

July or August; hatches in 3 days.
16 days.
14 days in July or for caterpillars of August, they overwinter till May.

Cabbages:-
Charlock,
Creeping Yellow-cress,
Cuckoo Flower (Lady's Smock),
Dame's Violet,
Hedge-Mustard,
Horseradish,
Garlic-Mustard,
Lady's Smock,
Large Bittercress,
Rock-cress (Common Winter-Cress),
Yellow Rocket (Common Winter-Cress),
Watercress ,
Wild Turnip

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid in the tight buds and flowers.
Eats leaves, buds, flowers and especially the seed pods.
---

May-June 7 days.

June-July 24 days.

August-May

Cherry with
Wild Cherry,
Morello Cherry and
Bird Cherry

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats buds and flowers.

Base of food plant.

-
-
Spend winter at the base of the food plant. They resume feeding in March.
2 weeks.

Pale Clouded Yellow

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.

10 days in May-June.
July-August.
17 days in August-September.

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.

6 days in May-June.
30 days.
18 days in July-August.

Cocksfoot is a grass

Large Skipper

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg under leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

11 Months
3 weeks from May

Cow-wheat

(Common CowWheat, Field CowWheat)

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until end of August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats young leaves until June.
---

Hatches after 16 days in June.
June-April

25 days in June.

Currants
(Red Currant,
Black Currant and Gooseberry)

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

Devilsbit Scabious

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until late August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 20 days in July.
July-May.

15 days in May.

Dog Violet with
Common Dog Violet,
Heath Dog Violet and
Wood Dog Violet

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Egg,
Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on oak or pine tree trunk
Hibernates in a crevice in the bark of the tree trunk.
Moves out of tree to eat Dog Violet leaves.
On rock or twig.

15 days in July.
August-March.

March-May.

Late June-July

Dog Violet with
Common Dog Violet,
Heath Dog Violet and
Wood Dog Violet

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf or stem.

Feeds on leaves until July. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats young leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 15 days in May-June.
July-May.

9 days in June.

Dog Violet with
Common Dog Violet,
Heath Dog Violet and
Wood Dog Violet

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf or stem.

Feeds on leaves until July. Hibernates in dead leaves until March. Eats young leaves until April.
---

Hatches after 10 days in May-June.
June-April

April-June.

Dogwood

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Elm and Wych Elm

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

False Brome is a grass (Wood Brome, Wood False-brome and Slender False-brome)

Large Skipper

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg under leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

...
11 Months
3 weeks from May

Foxglove

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until late August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 20 days in July.
July-May

15 days in May.

Fyfield Pea

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg laid on underside of leaflets or bracts.
Eats leaves.
---

7 days in June.

32 days in June-July.
July-May.

Garden Pansy

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf or stem.
Feeds on leaves until July. Hibernates in dead leaves until March. Eats young leaves until April.
---

Hatches after 10 days in May-June.
June-April

April-June.

Gorse

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Heartsease

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid under the leaf or on top of the flower.
Eats leaves, then before pupating it eats the bloom and leaves of the pansies.
---

7 days in August.

23 days in August-September.

3 weeks in September

Hogs's Fennel

Swallowtail

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf. 5 or 6 eggs may be deposited by separate females on one leaf.
Eats leaves, and moves to stems of sedges or other fen plants before pupating.
---

14 days in July-August.

August-September.

September-May.

Holly

Honesty (Lunaria biennis)

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid in the tight buds and flowers.
Eats leaves, buds, flowers and especially the seed pods.
---

May-June 7 days.

June-July 24 days.

August-May

Honeysuckle

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until late August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 20 days in July.
July-May.

15 days in May.

Hop

Adonis Blue

Chalk-Hill Blue

Berger's Clouded Yellow

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

Horseshoe vetch

Egg,
Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg under leaf.
Eats leaves.

---

1 egg at base of plant.
Eats leaves.
---

1 egg on leaf.

Eats leaves.

---

1 then
June-March or September to July
3 weeks.

Late August-April.
April-June
1 Month

8-10 days in Late May-June or Middle August-September
June-July or September to October
8-15 days

Ivy

Pale Clouded Yellow

Clouded Yellow

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Kidney Vetch

Chalk-Hill Blue

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis
Butterfly

1 egg at base of plant.
Eats leaves.
---
Eats nectar.

Late August-April.
April-June
1 Month
20 days

Lucerne

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

10 days in May-June.
July-August.
17 days in August-September.

6 days in May-June.
30 days.
18 days in July-August.

Mallows

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

2 weeks
7-11days
7-11 days

Melilot

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.

6 days in May-June.
30 days.
18 days in July-August.

Mignonettes

Small White

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

May-June and August. 7 days.
28 days
21 days for May-June eggs, or overwinter till March

Milk Parsley

Swallowtail

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf. 5 or 6 eggs may be deposited by separate females on one leaf.
Eats leaves, and moves to stems of sedges or other fen plants before pupating.
---

14 days in July-August.

August-September

September-May

Narrow-leaved Plantain (Ribwort Plantain)

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until end of August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats young leaves until June.
---

Hatches after 16 days in June.
June-April.

25 days in June.

Narrow-leaved Plantain (Ribwort Plantain)

Glanville Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until middle of August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until April-May.
---

Hatches after 16 days in June.
June-April.

25 days in April-May.

Nasturtium from Gardens

Small White

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of leaf.

Eats leaves.
---

May-June and August. 7 days.
28 days.
21 days for May-June eggs, or overwinter till March

Oak Tree

Egg,
Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on tree trunk
Hibernates in a crevice in the bark of the tree trunk.
Moves out of tree to eat Dog Violet leaves.
On rock or twig.

15 days in July.
August-March.

March-May.

Late June-July

Mountain pansy,
Seaside Pansy,
Field Pansy and Cultivated Pansy.

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid under the leaf or on top of the flower.
Eats leaves of borage, sainfoin and heartsease, then before pupating it eats the bloom and leaves of the pansies.
---

7 days in August.

23 days in August-September

3 weeks in September

Pine Tree

Egg,
Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on tree trunk.
Hibernates in a crevice in the bark of the tree trunk.
Moves out of tree to eat Dog Violet leaves.
On rock or twig.

15 days in July.
August-March.

March-May.

Late June-July

Plantains

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until late August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 20 days in July.
July-May

15 days in May.

Poplar

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

Restharrow

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats buds and flowers.

Base of food plant.

-
-
Spend winter at the base of the food plant. They resume feeding in March.
2 weeks

Rock-rose

Brown Argus

Egg,
Caterpillar

1 egg under leaf.
Eats leaves.

Sainfoin

Common Sallow (Willows, Osiers)

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg laid under the leaf or on top of the flower.
Eats leaves, then before pupating it eats the bloom and leaves of the pansies.
---

7 days in August.

23 days in August-September

3 weeks in September

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

Sea Plantain

Glanville Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until middle of August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until April-May.
---

Hatches after 16 days in June.
June-April

25 days in April-May.

Snowberry

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Spindle-tree

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of a flower bud on its stalk.
Eats flower bud.
---

7 days.

28-42 days.
18 days. Early September to Late April for second generation.

Stinging Nettle

Comma

Painted Lady

Peacock

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Egg
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

Dense mass of 450-500 eggs on the under side of leaves over a 2 hour period.
Eats leaves, and moves to another plant before pupating.
---

2 weeks in June.
7-11 days.
7-11 days.

14 days in April-May.

28 days.

13days.

Storksbill

Brown Argus

Egg,
Caterpillar

1 egg under leaf.
Eats leaves.

Thistles

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

2 weeks
7-11days
7-11 days

Trefoils 1, 2, 3

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.

6 days in May-June.
30 days.
18 days in July-August.

Vetches

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Groups of eggs on upper side of leaf.
Eats buds and flowers.

Base of food plant.

-
-
Spend winter at the base of the food plant. They resume feeding in March.
2 weeks

Vetches

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg laid on underside of leaflets or bracts.
Eats leaves.
---

7 days in June.

32 days in June-July.
July-May.

Violets:-
Common Dog Violet,
Hairy Violet,
Heath Dog-violet
Pale Dog violet
Sweet Violet

Dark Green Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on underside of leaf or on stalk.
Hibernates where it hatches.
Eats leaves.

Base of food plant.

July-August for 17 days.

Spends winter on plant until end of March. Eats leaves until end of May.
4 weeks.

Violets:-
Common Dog Violet,
Hairy Violet,
Heath Dog-violet
Pale Dog violet
Sweet Violet

High Brown Fritillary

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on stem or stalk near plant base.
Feed on young leaves, stalks and stems
---

July to hatch in 8 months in March.
9 weeks ending in May.

4 weeks

Vipers Bugloss

Egg,
Caterpillar
Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf.
Eats leaves.
---

2 weeks.
7-11days.
7-11 days

Whitebeam
(White Beam)

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

Wild Angelica

Swallowtail

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

1 egg on leaf. 5 or 6 eggs may be deposited by separate females on one leaf.
Eats leaves, and moves to stems of sedges or other fen plants before pupating.
---

14 days in July-August.

August-September.

September-May

Willow
(Bay Willow)

Egg,

Caterpillar
Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches encircling the branch of the food plant.
Feeds on leaves.
Hangs suspended from stem.

Hatches after 18-22 days in April.
30 days in May.
9 days in June.

Wood-Sage

Egg,

Caterpillar

Chrysalis

Eggs laid in batches on the under side of the leaves.
Feeds on leaves until late August. Hibernates on dead leaves until March. Eats leaves until May.
---

Hatches after 20 days in July.
July-May.

15 days in May.

Plants used by the Butterflies

Plant Name

Butterfly Name

Egg/ Caterpillar/ Chrysalis/ Butterfly

Plant Usage

Plant Usage Months

Asters
in gardens

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

Runner and Broad Beans in fields and gardens

Large White

Small White

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-June or July-September.

March-May or June-September

Aubretia in gardens

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November

Birch

Butterfly

Eats sap exuding from trunk.

April-Mid June and Mid July-Early September for second generation.

Chalk-Hill Blue

Wood White

Marsh Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

20 days.

May-June.

30 days in May-June.

Bitter Vetch

Holly Blue

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June

Bluebell

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-Mid June and Mid July-Early September for second generation.

June.

June-August.

Bramble

Comma

Silver-washed Fritillary

High Brown Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October.

7 weeks in July-August.

June-August

Buddleias
in gardens

Comma

Peacock

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October.

July-May

Bugle

Wood White

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Heath Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June.

June.

June-August.

June-July.

Cabbage and cabbages in fields

Large White

Small White

Green-veined White

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-June or July-September.

March-May or June-September.

A Month during May-June or second flight in late July-August.

May-June for 18 days.

Charlock

Butterfly

Eats nectar

July-October

Adonis Blue

Chalk-Hill Blue

Painted Lady

Peacock

Large White

Small White

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

1 Month during Mid-May to Mid-June or during August-September

20 days in August.

July-October.

July-May.

April-June or July-September.

March-May or June-September

Pale Clouded Yellow

Clouded Yellow

Berger's Clouded Yellow

Queen of Spain Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

1 Month in May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

May-September.

Cow-wheat
(Common CowWheat, Field CowWheat)

Cuckoo Flower (Lady's Smock)

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June-July

Holly Blue

Marsh Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June

Dandelion

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-Mid June and Mid July-Early September for second generation.

30 days in May-June.

Fleabanes

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

3 weeks between May and September

Germander Speedwell (Veronica chamaedrys - Birdseye Speedwell)

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June-July

Greater Knapweed

Comma

Peacock

Clouded Yellow

Brimstone

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October.

July-May.

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

12 months

Hawkbit

Butterfly

Eats nectar

30 days in May-June.

Heartsease

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-September

Hedge Parsley

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

May-June for 18 days.

Hemp agrimony

Adonis Blue

Chalk-Hill Blue

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October

Horseshoe vetch

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

1 Month.

20 days

Ivy

Painted Lady

Brimstone

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

Hibernates during winter months in its foliage.

July-October.

October-July

Lucerne

Painted Lady

Large White

Small White

Pale Clouded Yellow

Clouded Yellow

Berger's Clouded Yellow

Butterfly

Eats nectar

July-October.

April-June or July-September.

March-May or June-September

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

1 Month in May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November

Marigolds in gardens

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November

Marjoram

Adonis Blue

Chalk-Hill Blue

Common Blue

Clouded Yellow

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

1 Month during Mid-May to Mid-June or during August-September.

20 days in August.

3 weeks in May-September.

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November

Michaelmas Daisies
in gardens

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October

Mignonettes

Large White

Small White

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-June or July-September.

March-May or June-September

Narrow-leaved Plantain (Ribwort Plantain)

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June-July

Nasturtiums in gardens

Large White

Small White

Butterfly

Eats nectar

April-June or July-September

March-May or June-September

Oak Tree

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats sap exuding from trunk.

April-Mid June and Mid July-Early September for second generation.

Primroses

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June.

June-August.

Ragged Robin

Wood White

Heath Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

May-June.

June-July.

Scabious

Painted Lady

Peacock

Butterfly

Eats nectar

July-October.

July-May

Sedum

Peacock

Butterfly

Eats nectar

July-May

Teasels

Thistles -
Creeping Thistle, Dwarf Thistle, Marsh Thistle, Meadow Thistle, Melancholy Thistle, Milk Thistle,
Musk Thistle, Seaside Thistle, Scotch Thistle, Spear Thistle, Tuberous Thistle, Welted Thistle, Woolly Thistle

Butterfly

Eats nectar

7 weeks in July-August.

Comma

Painted Lady

Peacock

Swallowtail

Clouded Yellow

Brimstone

Silver-washed Fritillary

High Brown Fritillary

Dark Green Fritillary

Queen of Spain Fritillary

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

July-October.

July-October.

July-May.

May-July.

May-June or August till killed by frost and damp in September-November.

12 months.

7 weeks in July-August

June-August.

July-August for 6 weeks.

May-September.

June-August.

Thymes

Adonis Blue

Chalk-Hill Blue

Glanville Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

3 weeks between May and September

Trefoils 1, 2, 3

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

1 Month during Mid-May to Mid-June or during August-September

20 days in August.

June-July

Vetches

Chalk-Hill Blue

Glanville Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar.

20 days in August.

June-July.

Violets

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June.

June-August.

Wood-Sage

Butterfly

Eats nectar

June-July

Apple/Pear/Cherry/Plum Fruit Tree Blossom in Spring

Peacock

Butterfly

Eats Nectar

April-May

Rotten Fruit

Peacock

Butterfly

Drinks juice

July-September

Tree sap and damaged ripe fruit, which are high in sugar