Two-spined Acaena

Flower: The flowers of Acaena ovalifolia are small, greenish to reddish, and grouped in dense, rounded heads atop slender stalks. They are not especially showy and lack petals, but they are functional and bloom in summer. Each flower head can eventually produce barbed fruits, typical of the genus. Fruit: The plant produces dry, burr-like achenes with two prominent, barbed spines per fruit—hence the name “two-spined.” These hooks allow the fruit to cling to animals or clothing for dispersal. While not as aggressively barbed as some Acaena species, it’s still a hitchhiker and should be handled careful... Leaves: The foliage consists of pinnate leaves with rounded, oval leaflets—reflected in the species name ovalifolia. The leaves are usually dark green, with a slightly leathery texture, forming a low mat or spreading ground cover. The leaf arrangement is neat and regularly spaced.

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Bog Arum

Flower: Bog Arum produces a striking, arum-like inflorescence consisting of a creamy-white spathe that wraps around a short, yellow-green spadix. The spathe is around 4–6 cm long, and the flowering period typically occurs in late spring to early summer (May to July). The spadix is covered with tiny, bisexua... Fruit: The plant develops a cluster of bright red berries in late summer. These are fleshy, rounded, and contain several seeds. While visually attractive, the berries are toxic if ingested, containing irritating compounds that can cause severe gastrointestinal symptoms. Leaves: Bog Arum has glossy, dark green, heart- or kidney-shaped leaves with long stalks, often growing up to 15 cm long. They emerge from a creeping rhizome and often form a loose rosette. The leaves are thick and waxy, helping them survive in their typical waterlogged habitats.

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Mountain Ash

Flower: The Mountain Ash, known for its stunning scarlet berries and delicate, creamy-white flowers, is a captivating sight in the British countryside. These elegant blossoms, often appearing in late spring to early summer, adorn the tree's branches with their soft, graceful petals. Their pristine beauty an... Fruit: The fruit of the Mountain Ash, distinguished by its vibrant red hue, is a distinctive feature of this iconic British tree. These glossy scarlet berries, often observed in abundance during the autumn season, create a striking contrast against the tree's green foliage. Their plump and inviting appeara... Leaves: The leaves of the Mountain Ash, commonly found in the United Kingdom, are characterized by their pinnate arrangement and finely serrated edges. Each leaflet is a lustrous dark green, imparting a rich, verdant canopy to the tree during the growing season. In the autumn, these leaves undergo a spectac...

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Bog Asphodel

Flower: Deep yellow spike of flowers, often tinged orange. Flowers are star-like with 6 petals and orange anthers. Fruit: Egg-shaped and bright orange. Leaves: Long and slender, grass-like.

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Yellow Azalea

Flower: Funnel-shaped, bright yellow flowers, up to 5cm across. Flowers appear together in dense clusters of 5 to 25. Pollinated by insects. Fruit: A dry, woody seed capsule, containing several minute seeds. Leaves: A bushy deciduous shrub whose leaves are oblong and turn red, purple or orange in autumn. Commonly seen as a garden plant in the British Isles but sometimes seen bird-sown in woods and on moorland. The leaves measure up to 10cm long and 4cm wide.

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Trailing Azalea

Flower: Trailing Azalea produces small, pale pink to white, star-shaped flowers arranged singly or in small clusters. The flowers have five pointed petals with a delicate, often speckled appearance, blooming in late spring to summer. Fruit: The fruit is a dry capsule, usually containing several small seeds. When mature, it splits open to release the seeds. Leaves: The leaves are small, evergreen, leathery, and scale-like, arranged oppositely or in whorls along trailing, creeping stems. They are dark green to reddish-brown, adapted to cold alpine and arctic environments.

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White Beak-sedge

Flower: White Beak-sedge (Rhynchospora alba) features small, inconspicuous flowers with pale to creamy-colored petals, typically arranged in compact clusters or spikelets at the tips of its slender, grass-like stems. The flowers are delicate and often go unnoticed due to their subtle appearance, but they ad... Fruit: The fruit of White Beak-sedge consists of small, nut-like achenes. These achenes are typically dark brown or black and are attached to the plant's stem in clusters. They have a hard, seed-like shell and are dispersed by wind or water, contributing to the plant's reproductive cycle. Leaves: The leaves of White Beak-sedge are long, slender, and grass-like in appearance. They are typically dark green and have a linear shape. These leaves grow in dense tufts and arise from the base of the plant, forming an attractive clump. The leaves are typically smooth and narrow, adding to the overall...

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Bearberry

Flower: Bearberry produces delicate, urn-shaped flowers that bloom from April to June. These small, pale pink to white flowers hang in short clusters and are typical of the heather family (Ericaceae). Their waxy, bell-like form closely resembles miniature versions of blueberry or lingonberry flowers. They a... Fruit: By late summer to early autumn, Bearberry develops bright red, glossy berries about the size of peas. These fruits persist into winter and are edible, though mealy and bland in taste. They are an important winter food source for birds and mammals, particularly bears—hence the common name. Though saf... Leaves: The evergreen leaves are leathery, dark green, and oval with smooth edges and a slightly notched tip. They are alternately arranged and have a shiny upper surface with a lighter, paler underside. The leaves remain throughout the year, giving Bearberry a consistently neat, low-growing appearance. The...

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Arctic Bearberry

Flower: Arctic Bearberry produces small, bell-shaped flowers in late spring to early summer, usually from May to June. The blooms are white to pale pink, sometimes flushed with red, and have five fused petals forming a narrow, nodding urn shape. Though modest in size (typically under 5 mm), the flowers are ... Fruit: The fruit is a glossy black berry, around 5–8 mm in diameter, ripening in late summer. Unlike the red berries of its relative Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (Common Bearberry), A. alpinus produces black berries, which are edible but rather bland or slightly mealy in taste. The berries are an important food... Leaves: Leaves are small, leathery, and oval-shaped, with a glossy green upper surface and paler underside. They are finely toothed, unlike the smooth-edged leaves of Common Bearberry. Deciduous in most areas, the leaves may turn reddish in autumn before falling, particularly in colder climates.

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Heath Bedstraw

Flower: Heath Bedstraw produces small, delicate white flowers, typically 2–3 mm across, with four pointed petals arranged in a cross shape. These star-like blooms appear from May to August and often cover the plant in dense clusters. Though individually tiny, they collectively give the plant a frothy, cloud... Fruit: The fruit is a minute, round, dry schizocarp that splits into two single-seeded segments when ripe. These tiny fruits are usually hairless (unlike some other Galium species) and develop shortly after flowering. While not of culinary interest, they play a role in the plant's spread, assisted by gravi... Leaves: Leaves are narrow, linear, and pointed, arranged in whorls of 4 to 8 around the wiry, trailing stems. Each leaf is bright green with a rough texture due to tiny backward-pointing bristles along the margins, which help the plant cling slightly to its surroundings. The stems themselves are also somewh...

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Ivy-leaved Bellflower

Flower: Ivy-leaved Bellflower bears delicate, pale bluish-lilac, starry bell-shaped flowers with five shallow lobes and a slight twist to each petal. The flowers are around 8–10 mm across and sit singly on long, slender stalks that rise above the foliage. Blooming from June to September, the flowers have a ... Fruit: The fruit is a small, ovoid capsule that develops after flowering and contains numerous minute seeds. These are released through pores or by capsule splitting as they dry. Though modest in size, the plant can spread efficiently in damp, mossy environments where its seeds readily take hold. Leaves: The leaves are small, rounded to heart-shaped with three to five lobes, resembling miniature ivy leaves—hence the species name hederacea. They are soft, thin, and toothed, growing alternately along creeping, wiry stems. These stems often root at the nodes, forming a spreading mat close to the ground...

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Common Bent

Flower: Common Bent is a fine-textured grass that produces delicate, open flower panicles from June to September. The flowering heads are airy and branched, with purplish to greenish spikelets that shimmer in the breeze. Each tiny floret contains a single stamen and ovary, and although individually inconspi... Fruit: The fruit of Agrostis capillaris is a small, dry grain known as a caryopsis, like other grasses. These tiny seeds are enclosed in glumes and lemmas and ripen in late summer. While they are not showy, they are important as a food source for small birds and insects, and the grass reproduces both by se... Leaves: The leaves are fine, narrow, and rolled inward, typically less than 3 mm wide. They are smooth, bright green, and grow alternately along slender stems. The ligule (where the leaf joins the stem) is short and blunt—a useful feature in identifying this species. Common Bent forms a dense, low-growing t...

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Brown Bent

Flower: Reddish-purple flowers. Solitary, elliptical spikelets, up to 3.5mm long. Similar to Velvet Bent (Agrostis canina) but the flowers of Brown Bent are more densely packed. Fruit: The fruits of grasses are called caryopses. They are a kind of one-seeded, dry fruit. Leaves: A perennial grass species. Linear, flat leaf blades, up to 3mm wide. Blunt ligules. The similar looking Velvet Bent has sharper ligules.

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Bristle Bent

Flower: Agrostis curtisii produces delicate, open flower heads in the form of a narrow, airy panicle, often purple-tinged or greenish, blooming from June to August. The tiny spikelets are 1-flowered, with a distinctive long awn (bristle) extending from the lemmas—this awn is what gives the plant its common ... Fruit: The fruit is a typical grass caryopsis (grain), small and dry, enclosing a single seed. It's dispersed by wind or movement through vegetation, especially aided by the awn, which can help the fruit lodge into soil or debris. Seeds mature in late summer to early autumn, but the plant also spreads via ... Leaves: Leaves are narrow, wiry, and somewhat inrolled, giving a bristle-like appearance, especially toward the tips. They are typically 1–3 mm wide, with a harsh, rough texture. The plant forms dense tussocks with stiff, upright stems. The leaf sheaths can be slightly hairy, and the ligule is short and blu...

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Bilberry

Flower: Bilberry produces small, urn-shaped flowers that are typically pale pink or greenish-pink, often with a hint of red. Each flower is about 4–6 mm long and hangs singly from the leaf axils. Flowering occurs from April to June, depending on elevation and location. The blooms are pollinated by bees, esp... Fruit: The fruit of Bilberry is a soft, round, dark blue to black berry with a purplish bloom, typically around 5–8 mm in diameter. Ripening from July to September, the berries are juicy and have a rich, tart flavour. They are edible and highly nutritious, packed with antioxidants. The berries stain finger... Leaves: Bilberry leaves are small, oval to lance-shaped, and finely toothed, with a fresh green colour that often turns red or bronze in autumn. The leaves are thin and slightly papery, arranged alternately along the green, angular stems. This low-growing shrub typically reaches 15–50 cm in height and is co...

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