| This series of picture cards is offered in the interests of education by Brooke Bond | PG Tips | British Wildlife Flowers Series 1


	FRITILLARY (Fritillana melengris L) This uncommon plant - which belongs to the lily family - grows in damp meadows. It has a small bulb from which arises slender stem bearing a few narrow leaves and a single drooping flower - similar in shape to that of the tulip. As a rule the flower is prettily chequered with purple and pink - but it may be pure white. Very rarely two flowers grow upon one stem. The fritillary comes into bloom In April.
	CHICKWEED WINTERGEFEN (Trientalis europea L) In spite of its popular name this attractive little plant is not a wintergreen nor a chickweed. It belongs - in fact - to the primrose family. The stem - a few inches high - bears at its top a whorl of five or six leaves. some larger than others. The one or two white flowers. each on a separate stalk - spring from the centre. Chickweed wintergreen is common in the Scottish pine forests and occurs as far south as Yorkshire.
	WILD PANSY (Viola tricolor L) This little plant varies considerably but is always easily recognizable as a pansy. It is usually an annual. growing freely from seed. In some plants the stein is inclined to trail on the ground ; in others it stands upright for six inches or so. The flowers may be either bluish-purple. or yellow - or a combination of these colours - and they are about half an inch across. The purple type - shown here - are the most attractive.
	TUFTFD SAXIFRAGE (Saxif rags coespitosa L) As a British wild plant the tufted saxifrage is quite rare and is eagerly sought by botanists on the mountains of Scotland and North Wales. In old plants the foliage forms a .compact cushion from which the flowering stems arise during May and June. Their maximum height is about three Inches and each stem carries one or two small white five-petalled flowers.
	EVENING PRIMROSE (Oenothera biennia L) This handsome plant came In the first place from north America. It is well established in many parts of Europe. including Britain. Its tall stems and large yellow flowers are a conspicuous feature of many sand dunes - and are often seen on railway embankments. and on bombed sites In towns. The leaves are undivided - soft and hairy. The flowers open in the evening and become slightly fragant. June to September is the flowering period.
	LESSER KNAP WEED (Centaurea nigra L) This tough - rigid plant is common all over the British Isles. It grows by the roadside and on grassland and can be seen In bloom from June until October or later. The stem is upright - branching In the upper part - and usually about two feet high. The leaves are roughly hairy - the lower ones toothed or lobed. The flower-heads. composite - with purple florets - are solitary on the ends of the branches.
	TEASEL (Dipsacus sylvestris Huds) Wherever It grows this tall stiff plant with conspicuous prickly flower-head can hardly fail to be noticed. It has the general appearance of a thistle. although the two plants are not in any way related. The teasel flowers In late summer and seems never to he in full bloom. Its small purple florets open a few at a time. In a succession of bands round the otherwise green flower-head.
	MARSH MARIGOLD (Caltha palustris L)King cup - Marybod and Marybud are other old names for this well-known plant whose handsome golden flowers adorn the streamside and marsh in spring. At first glance the flowers are like large buttercups - but whereas the buttercup has yellow petals with green sepals beneath - the marsh marigold has no true petals. Instead the sepals are coloured to resemble petals.
	RED CAMPION (Melandriurn rubrum (Weig) Garcke) The red or pink campion is a typical plant of damp woods - but it also occurs on hedge banks and on open cliffs where the soil Is rich. Most of the foliage Is on short non-flowering stems at the base of the plant. The tall flowering stems carry only a few pairs of leaves. Stems and leaves are soft and hairy. The bright pink flowers are at their best in early summer. They are of the kind called unisexual - the anthers and the stigmas being In separate flowers - the male and female flowers occurring on different plants.
	WILD TULIP (Tulips sylvestris L) This plant is Introduced and has become naturalised in meadows and orchards mainly in eastern England and south-east Scotland. The stem Is about a foot or a little more In height with from one to three rather narrow leaves. The single terminal flower is yellow inside - greenish-yellow outside - and it droops when In bud. Although an attractive flower its colouring Is somewhat subdued when compared with the brilliant cultivated tulips in our gardens.
	COW PARSNIP (Heracleum sphon-dylium L) Most people have difficulty in sorting out our various Umberella-parsley-like plants with flower stalks arranged like the ribs of an umbrella. The cow parsnip Is one of the most common. growing by roadsides and on waste ground everywhere and flowering from June until late autumn. Its stem is thick. grooved and hairy - and its leaves are much less finely divided than is usual in this family. The umbels of small white flowers are often six inches across.
	BLOOD - RED CEANESBILL (Gerensum sanguineum L) This handsome wild geranium Is found chiefly towards the north of England and in Scotland. It prefers a well-drained soil and makes a bold display on some of the limestone mountains in Yorkshire and elsewhere. The leaves are roughly orbicular in outline - divided almost to the base into five or seven segments. The purplish-crimson flowers an inch and a half in diameter. grow separately on long thin stalks.
	TOADFLAX (Linaria talgaris Mill) Late in the autumn - when wild flowers have disappeared - the toadflax is still in full bloom on the hedge banks. In favourable conditions its smooth stems are upright. and reach a height of about three feet. They are thickly clad with narrow leaves. The spikes of yellow flowers resemble those of the garden snapdragon - except that - in the toad-flax - each flower has a long tail or Spur.
	BURDOCK (Aretium lappa L) The Burdock attracts attention in autumn - when its round fruiting heads attach themselves to our clothing if we brush against them. It is a tall stout plant with large heart-shaped leaves - their undersides covered with grey cottony down. The bracts on the thistle-like flower heads have-long hooked tips and the reddish florets are all tubular - with no spreading rays. This is a common plant of roadsides and waste ground.
	MAIDEN PINK (Dianthus deltoides L) Dry soils are favoured by this attractive wild pink. It sometimes establishes itself on old walls and stonework. but more often in pastures and on hillsides. Its foliage is grass-like and forms loose tufts. and its stems - branching near the base - are about a fool long. The flowers are about three-quarters of an inch across - rose-coloured with white dots - and with toothed edges to the petals. They are not scented.
	SPUR ValERIAN (Kentrasthus ruber (L) Dc) Many ancient buildings - Chepstow Castle. for example - are made beautiful in summer by this plant. It flourishes on old walls and is also commonly found on sea cliffs - and in chalk pits. The main stem is woody and perennial and It throws up a number of smooth branches with greyish-green stalkless leaves. As a rote the flowers are pink - but white and deep red forms are quite common. Each flower is small. tubular - and ending in a long spur.
	VIPER'S BUGLOSS (Echium vulgare L) When in bud the flowers of this plant are pink or purple - becoming a brilliant blue as they open. The leaves and stems are hairy and very rough to the touch. Viper's bugloss prefers a dry toil and is common on the chalk downs and on sea cliffs in many places. It flowers from June to September. but looks its best early in the season. Ah it goes to seed the stems lengthen and become untidy.
	LARGE - FLOWERED ST. JOHN'S WORT (Hypericuni calvcinum L -) A south-east European plant which has long been naturalized In many places - on the edges of woods - beneath hedgerows and in shrubberies - It has an extensively creeping root-stock - stems rising to about a foot. and smooth - oval - evergreen leaves. The beautiful golden flowers - three inches across - have a great number of very prominent stamens - united at the base into five bundles. July to September is the time of flowering.
	HAREBELL (Carmpanula rotudifolia L) This is the bluebell of Scotland - a totally different plant from the bluebell of England - the wild hyacinth - Both are found all over Britain The harebell is a very slender perennial - growing on dry commons and downs - where it flowers during the late summer. The name " rotundifolia" (round-leaved) refers to the small basal leaves - often hidden in the grass and easily overlooked. The more obvious stem leaves are quite narrow.
	SPEAR thISTLE (Cirsium vutinare (Savil) Ten) This is the most spiny of our common thistles - and one of the largest - its spreading branches often reaching a height of five feet. Stiff sharp spines grow from the wings on the stem - from the edges of the leaves and from the bracts of the flower-head - The pale purple flowers - which continue from July to October. are visited by many kinds of insects - while in autumn and winter the seeds in the feathery pappus are attractive to goldfinches.
	WILD StrAWBERRY (fragaria vesca L) The wild strawberry. like a garden strawberry in miniature - is common on hedge banks and in woods. It flowers from April to July. when its little red fruits ripen. These fleshy fruits - and the long runners by which it spreads - will distinguish the true wild strawberry from the somewhat similar barren strawberry - which produces dry fruits and shorter - runners.
	DANDELION (Tarexacum officianele Weber) As every gardener dandelion forms a deep tap-root - and a very short stem from which grow the long leaves with their triangular lobes. The golden flower-head is at the type known as Composite - consisting of a large number of small flowers - or florets - packed tightly together. April is the chief flowering season - but odd plants can be found in bloom at any time of the year.
	COLTSFOOT (Tussilago farfara L) The yellow daisy-shaped flower-heads of the coltsfoot open very early in the year. often in February. The flowering stems are generally in tufts. and they are covered with long scales. They continue to grow until the plant goes to seed - when each head bears a ball of white dawn. The broad leaves - green above and white and cottony beneath - develop later in the spring. Coltsfoot thrives on clay soil which has recently been disturbed.
	SCARLET PIMPERNEL (Anugallis arvensis L) This little annual is common on cultivated ground and by roadsides. The stems are square - the oval leaves are arranged In opposite pairs - and the flowers - on slender stalks - grow singly from the axis of the leaves - Red flowers are the rule - but occasionally they are pink - white or blue. The flowers open only in bright weather They are said to close when rain threatens hence the old country name "poor man's weather-glass."
	WOODY NIGHTSHADE (Solanum dulcamare L) Bittersweet is another name for this familiar plant of hedgerow and waste ground. Its long trailing stems make use of any available support - The dark green leaves are of various shapes - some entire and others deeply lobed at the base. The flower Is purple - with a yellow cone - formed by the anthers - projecting from the centre. Bunches of orange and red berries appear in the autumn
	WILD WalLFLOWER (Cheiranthus cheiri L) Although not a true native - the wild form of wallflower has long been established on old walls In many parts of the country - The flowers are always single and plain yellow. They are sweetly scented like the more gaily coloured garden varieties - and they appear from April to June The wallflower belongs to the large family of - .- - -
	YARROW (Achillea millefolium L) The yarrow or milfoil is a familiar plant of pastures and roadsides all over the country. Its lower leaves are long and narrow and divided into slender feathery segments. The flowering stem - about a foot to eighteen Inches tall - carries a few similar but shorter leaves - and a dense corymb of flower-heads - These are of the composite type. with yellowish disk and white-or occasionally pink-ray florets - They appear from June onwards.
	COMMON MalLOW (Malva sylvestris L) At midsummer - when in full bloom - the mallow Is a handsome and showy plant. common by the roadsides In the south of England. The leaves at the base are almost round. with slight lobes. Those on the stem are more distinctly lobed. The flowers are mauve with slightly darker stripes - each having five separate petals - notched at the tips. They average about an inch and a half across.
	BIRD'S - FOOT trEFOIL (Lotus corniculatus L) On the open common and amongst the turf of cliff tops this little plant provides bright patches of colour throughout the summer - The popular name Trefoil is misleading - for the leaf is divided into five - not three - leaflets. The stems are branching. usually prostrate - and up to about a foot In length. The pea-shaped flowers grow in heads of from two to six - They are yellow - tinted or tipped with red.
	LING or HEATHER (Culluna culgaris (L) Hull) Large areas of moorland and mountainside where the soil is acid - in the Scottish Highlands and elsewhere. are completely covered by heather. The stems are very tough and wiry. twisting and branching in all directions. On old plants they may be up to three feet in length. Minute triangular leaves cover all the twigs. and in late summer the tiny purple flowers are produced in such numbers that they often dominate the landscape.
	alEXANDERS (Smyrmium olusatrum L) Within a few miles of the sea this plant will be noticed growing by the wayside - and the nearer we get to the coast the more abundant it becomes - It is a stout smooth plant - with large shiny leaves divided into broad segments - The flowers are greenish-yellow - and they grow in large rounded umbeis - They begin to open in April. earlier than moat of the Umbellifers - and are followed later in the year by round black seed-vessels.
	Sea ASTER (Aster tripolium L) On parts of the east and south coasts there are wide salt marshes - covered by the high tides. Mere the sea aster grows. often abundantly. and presents a beautiful picture in late summer. It is about two feet tall. with narrow. rather fleshy leaves - and flowers resembling pale-blue Michaelmas daisies. Occasionally a variety will be found in which the flower-head has only the yellow disk - and no ray florets -
	COMMON MELLIOT (Melilotus offiinalis (L) Lom) On open waste ground the melliot grows to about four feet high - with a great many slender spreading branches. The leaves - on long stalks - are each divided into three small leaflets with finely toothed edges. The small yellow flowers are pea-shaped. in long racemes. and are produced abundantly in late summer. They are pollinated largely by bees. in drying. the melliot gives off a sweet smell like new-mown hay.
	BLUEBELL (Endymion non scriptus (L) Garcke) A wood filled with bluebells is one of the beauties of the countryside which we are all anxious to preserve. Expert botanists now consider that picking a few flowers from the edges of a clump will not do much harm as long as care is taken to avoid damaging the leaves. If the leaves are trampled upon while in full growth the plants will die for certain. In the west country the bluebell grows on cliff tops. as well as in woods.
	LILY OF THE ValLEY (Convallaria majalis L) The sweetly- scented lily of the valley Is popular In gardens but not very common as a wild plant. It occurs in certain dry woods and on limestone hillsides. sometimes covering large patches of ground. It has a creeping rootstock from which arise the broad smooth leaves - in pairs - The white bell-shaped flowers are found in May and June - The fruit Is In the form of a red berry. which ripens In the autumn -
	SAW-WORT (Sestrirratula tinctoris L) The stiff and upright saw-wart is a perennial - growing chiefly in open woodland. in rough pastures - and in some areas amongst limestone rocks. It has wiry stems - the leaves on which are finely toothed. The lower leaves are pinnately divided. Often the composite flower-heads are arranged in groups of. three on the ends of the branches. The flowers are light purple - or rarely white - They open in late summer and autumn - and are attractive 13 bees -
	WELSH POPPY (Meconopsis cam brica Vig -) The Welsh poppy is truly at home in damp and rocky places in Wales and south-west England. but is naturalized in other parts of the country. Its rootstock is perennial - and the leafy stems rise to about one to two feet - The leaves are pale green. pinnately divided. and the lower ones are on long stalks - The pale yellow flowers - each with four petals - are at their best In June and July -
	SCENTLESS MAYWEED (Matricaria inodora L) There are several daisy-flowered plants with which this might 'be confused - some of them strongly scented. pleasantly or otherwise - The scentless mayweed - with no smell at all - is a soft green plant - Its foliage cut into a mass of extremely floe segments - The flower-head - with yellow disk - and white spreading ray florets - is about two inches across. This mayweed is often very abundant on waste ground - A closely related Dorm grows on sea cliffs.
	RED CLOVER (Trifolium pratense L) A dozen or more different clovers grow in the meadows - Some are Introduced and cultivated for hay - One of the best-known of our native farms is the common red clover - Its large oval leaflets are green with a light crescent-shaped hand. Its small pinkish-purple flowers are grouped in conspicuous heads which are at first round - later becoming oval. It has a long flowering period-from May to September or October.
	PRIMROSE (Primula vulgaris Muds) One of our most popular spring flowers - the primrose is often dug up and transplanted to gardens. It flourishes in woods and under hedges - and in the west country is common also an cliff tops. The separate stalks of the pale yellow flowers appear to grow direct from the root stock. Actually there is a common stem - like that of the cowslip. but very short and hidden amongst the leaves -
	WORMWOOD (Artemisa absinthium L) The foliage of the strognly aromatic wormwood is more showy than the flowers. It is a leafy plant. two to three feet tall. the leaves cut into pointed segments and silky on both sides - The composite flower-heads - in silky - drooping racemes - are inconspicuous. This is a much less common plant than the mugwort (Artestrimisia oulgaris) - whose leaves are dark green above and whitish beneath. Both plants flower in the late summer.
	WILD MIGNONETTE (Reseda lutea L) Dry soil is favoured by the mild mignonette and it is not uncommon on the chalk downs. It is related to the garden mignonette but as a taller and stiffer plant and the flowers are scentless. It has a deep tap-root and erect branching stems up to about three feet high. The leaves are deeply and irregularly lobed. or sometimes pinnate. Those at the base have often withered away by the time the conical racemes of greenish-yellow flowers appear.
	FIELD POPPY (Papeoer rhoeds L) Since the introduction of selective weed killers the spectacle of a field of poppies amongst the corn Is becoming lets common. The red peppy is an annual - with slender bristly stems containing a milky juice - The leaves. also very bristly - are divided into narrow segments - Each flower - with four large fragile petals - is on a separate long stalk - The small brown seeds are contained in a distinctively shaped capsule.
	SHEEP'S-BIT (Jasione montana L) Not a very well-known plant. although by no means rare. It is found chiefly on light lime-free soils - either inland or near the sea. On Cornish cliff tops it is quite common. As a rule it is a biennial. rather less than a foot tall. with narrow hairy leaves on the lower part of the stem. The small blue flowers are grouped many together in terminal heads. Sheep's-bit belongs to the Campanula or Retiflower family.
	HONEYSUCKLE (Lonicera periclymestrinum L) This is one of the most popular of our hedgerow plants. It climbs by twining - and its woody stems may reach a length of fifteen feet or more. It has smooth oval leaves - growing in pairs - The sweet-smelling flowers appear from June onwards - in clusters on the ends of the shoots. They are rich In nectar and very attractive to insects. In autumn they are followed by clusters of red berries.
	CREEPING BUTTERCUP (Ranunculus repestrins L) Several kinds of buttercup grow in the meadows and this is one of the most abundant. It is especially fond of a damp clay soil and In some districts becomes a nuisance as a garden weed. The creeping buttercup spreads by means of long runners which root and form new plants. The flowering stems rise to from one to two feet and the familiar yellow flowers appear from May until the autumn.
	SOLOMON'S SEal (Polygonatum multiatorum (L) All) As a garden plant the Solomon's seal is familiar to everybody - but it is native to Britain. and although not common can be found growing naturally in some shady woods. It lass a long stem which arches gracefully and carries a double row of simple leaves - arranged alternately. From the axils of the leaves hang clusters of greenish-white flowers. These open in May and June. and are succeeded by small berries. blue-black In colour.
	DEVIL'S-BIT SCABIOUS (Succisa pratensis Moench) his is an autumn flowering plant - growing by roadsides and in woods - and preferring damp soil. The curious name refers to the shape of the root. which ends abruptly as if it had been bitten off. From a rosette of leaves the stems rise to about two feet high. The flower-heads - on long stalks. measure roughly an Inch across. Their usual colour is a deep purplish blue - but specimens with white flowers are sometimes found.
	SEA BINDWEED (Calystegia soldan ella (L) B - Br -) This beautiful form of wild convolvulus grows on sandy beaches and dunes. The stems lie upon the surface of the sand and do not twine like those of the hedgerow bindweeds. The leaves are small - round or kidney-shaped. and rather thick and fleshy. Each flower. pink-striped and about an inch and a half across. grows separately on a quadrangular stalk. The flowers are produced rather sparingly from June to August.
	WINTER ACONITE (Eranthis hyemalis (L) Salisb) Earlier even than the snowdrop the winter aconite comes into bloom - Each flower is on a separate stalk a few inches high. and has six yellow petal-like sepals. Immediately below Is a whorl of greenery composed of three deeply-divided leaves - The leaves from the root appear a little later than the flowers. They are on long stalks. are round in outline and cut into narrow segments - This is a naturalized plant - now to be found In woods and plantations.

"Ah I see sir I have your attention"
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