This event was led by Kat Edwards-White, local botanist and RVCWG Secretary
A group of 15 gathered on a sunny morning in the Pontesford Hill Car Park ready to explore and
learn about the wildflowers growing locally around the hill. Kat led the group around the site,
stopping to show everyone the range of wildflowers that filled the woodland floor, talking through
the identifying features of each wildflower. Bluebells, Wild garlic, Wood Forget-me-not, Lesser
Celandine to name just a few. We looked at the range of ferns growing on the hill, with Male Fern,
Lady Fern, Broad Buckler Fern and Soft Shield Fern.
As we walked from the woodland towards the grassland, we spotted some small speedwells, Ivy-
leaved Speedwell and Thyme-leaved Speedwell with their tiny flowers. The grassland was full of ant
hills which is a sign that it hasn’t been ploughed or had any nutrients added-making it a great place
for wildflowers to flourish. Looking closely at the anthills the group spotted a lot of tiny wildflowers
including the beautiful changing colour forget-me-not. This is a lovely spring ephemeral, whose
flowers are different colours.
As we continued through the woodland, we spotted a few ancient woodland indicators including
some ‘less common’ species such as Goldilocks Buttercup, Moschatel and Wood Speedwell.
It wasn’t all about the wildflowers though, as the Peregrines were calling around the crags, the
blackcaps were singing loudly, and redstarts were flitting through the scrub. There were also a few
lizards on the rocks that were making the most of the afternoon sunshine.
It was an enjoyable session that was well balanced between supporting beginners with general
interest and giving enough botanical specialism for those with a keen interest. It was a lovely area to
explore.
