Bulbous canary-grass, Phalaris aquatica
Grasses are not everyone's cup-of-tea but Bulbous canary-grass might be to those desiring a psychedelic experience. Its leaves and seeds contain a cocktail of hallucinogenic tryptamine analogues and I emphasise that there is no causative relationship between my specimen and what I have to say about local records!In my news report of finds in TA22U, dated 25 November, I commented on finding this grass in an adjacent tetrad to an existing record (TA22Z). For some reason I had it in mind then that the TA22Z find was a 'still there' record for an older find that was the first record for vc61, and that the recent TA22U find was a new and second vc61 record. I have been niggled by the fact that I could not find the voucher specimen for the first record, being sure that I had not smoked it. However, while looking for something else in the turmoil of my office before Christmas I found my voucher specimen, confirmed by Mr Bruno Ryves at Kew, in December 1997. This is labelled as being found 'Near Roos Bog, TA22U etc.' This is the dot in the Atlas and is the first vc61 record.
Once established in a locale this alien grass appears to persist and I am wondering why we are not seeing more of it. Time for tea.
Peter Cook, 31 December 2016
While exploring the parish allotments in Kelfield we were struck by two apparently different Galinsogas growing together. Not wishing to be too hasty with this variable Genus, I brought specimens of each home to ripen the seedhead for a definitive determination. The above image shows a head (minus seeds) of each type. Sample A has simple strap-like scales and sample B has broader tri-lobed scales. This confirms our field identification of Galinsoga quadriradiata for A (shorter, glandular-hairy plants) and G. parviflora for B (taller, almost glabrous plants).
We enjoyed fine weather for our Local Group, end of season, trip to one of the furthest outposts of the vice-county. Despite the fact that many of the plants, particularly along the Ouse flood-bank, were by now unidentifiable, we did clock up an impressive 180 taxa. Among the star finds were Medicago arabica (above), Oenanthe crocata and Galinsoga quadriradiata. There had been much environmental "improvement" in the area and some of the more interesting plants found may have been introductions - Glebionis segetum, Centaurea cyanus, Rosa rubiginosa, &c."
This tetrad currently has a wide variety of broad habitats including fore-, mid- and upper saltmarsh, relict sand dune, coastal dry grassland, arable field margins, fresh water ditches, brackish pools and swamp. There are Natura 2000, SSSI and two Local Wildlife Site designations on land soon to be consumed within the Welwick to Skeffling coastal defence realignment and habitat creation scheme. On recent 'covert special operations' in the area I have collected a further 44 species to add to the existing 164 post 2000 list, and have noted 'hot spots'. The most significant and satisfying find was a ca. 10 m x 1m ribbon of Stone Parsley (Sison amomum) plants approximately 100 m away from a site that was obliterated in the development of the Outstrays habitat creation scheme more than 10 years ago. It is not particularly photogenic but each white flower head is an umbel. A leaf is shown in the top left corner. See the RPR for status.
Scale indication - 'stem' width = 1 mm
With only a single taxon recorded from this selected tetrad it hardly even deseved it's red spot on the map. A three hour recording visit this morning managed to add a further 137 taxa. This is not a lot but it seems to be about par for these very arable Wolds tetrads. A few nice chalk grassland species were hanging-on along one good, but overgrown, verge to the west of the village but most things were mundane. Nevertheless nine new plants were added to the hectad total, incuding a typical inland halophytic community of Buck's-horn Plantain Plantago coronopus, Lesser Sea-spurrey Spergularia marina and Reflexed Saltmarsh-grass Puccinellia distans. The photo above was taken in the parish chalk pit which has been used at some time, presumably, for storing road salt.
Not our finest hour; circumstances conspired to prevent our survey of the intended tetrad and a considered re-grouping was made in Kirby Grindalythe - another selected tetrad in SE96. This new tetrad had a previous, modest, total of 107 taxa and our efforts increased this by a further 50 with 16 new hectad records. Among the more interesting finds were Green Field-speedwell (Veronica agrestis) and flowering plants of Bulbous Buttercup (Ranunculus bulbosus) in a small dissused quarry and a huge specimen of Elecampane (Inula helenium) - pictured - in a roadside hedge.
After a couple of lack-lustre hours examining TA1330 - Preston Road, Hull, I was temped onto a derelict site on the corner of Marfleet Lane. A large area of housing had been demolished and the ground levelled with a light, gritty material. The dominant plants seemed to be Chenopodiums both album and rubrum but sprinkled in with this was a strange mixture of aliens including the rather striking Nicandra physalodes (Apple-of-Peru, above). Other interesting plants were the bird-seed grasses Setaria viridis, Echinochloa crus-galli and Phalaris canariensis. Plenty of stray tomatoes (hinting at the origins of this association?) but also Ranunculus sceleratus, Rumex conglomeratus and Rorippa palustris!
It's always good to meet up with old friends. The above picture was taken this morning while surveying TA0731. It shows a plants of Rustyback (Asplenium ceterach) growing on a garden wall near the cremetorium. I first discovered the fern on the same wall 16 years ago and it remained the only vc61 site for several years until the wall was "cleaned". Over the last decade I have made repeated visits to no avail but today there were four young plants so it's now officially back on the vc list!
Over the last decade I have made very few records of either Veronica agrestis or V. polita and have often worried that I am grouping all weedy Speedwells as V. persica. I was very pleased yesterday to find a plant of V. polita on Auckland Avenue, Hull. Determined to make a careful comparison I brought a sample home and searched my garden in vain for V. persica to compare it against. On the plus side I found did find V. agrestis! (The parish allotments provided my persica). Above is a photograph of a seed capsule from each.
Yesterday, while out surveying an urban monad (TA0829) for the Hull Nats' atlas programme, I came across a single plant of Salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius) in a car park just off Spring Bank. The taxon has been known from this area for almost two decades but, so far as I am aware, it remains its only vc61 station.
I was extremely pleased yesterday afternoon to discover a colony of Goldilocks Buttercup Ranunculus auricomus growing in a patch of relict woodland adjoining Saltshouse Road, Hull. There is a spot shown for TA13G in Crackles' 1990 Flora but I have been unable to determine whether it relates to this locality. How long the plants have been there and whether it was deliberately introduced I do not know but I can remember gathering Bluebells at the same spot sixty years ago!
A recording visit to Welwick Bushes, primarily to look for lichens, was rewarded with some interesting new additions to the post 2000 list for this tetrad. Most remarkable was the second vc61 site for Valerianella locusta subsp. dunensis (D. E. Allen) Sell. This was first recorded by me at Chalk Bank, Spurn, (confirmed D E Allen) in March 1995. As the photo shows, against a 5p piece, it is a diminutive plant with only a few leaves and a head of flowers above the sand. Close-by was Sea Pearlwort Sagina maritima and a second site for Galium verum subsp. maritimum, first recorded last year (See Notes for 2015). In total, 9 taxa were recorded raising the tetrad total to 162. A thorough search for Lesser Chickweed Stellaria pallida, which is known to occur at this site, was unsuccessful at this visit.
I recently found the pictured fern on a Hull garden wall. So far it has defied all attempts to give it a name. Could it be one of the rare Asplenium hybrids? More news will be posted as it becomes available.
