Carline thistle
The Carline thistle produces distinctive brown-and-golden flower heads that look like a seeded thistle. These flowers are attractive to a wide range of butterflies, including the very rare Large…
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Water vole by Terry Whittaker/2020VISION
Chwilio
My world
John has worked in fisheries management for over 25 years. He has seen our waterways at their best – and their worst. He knows firsthand how devastating unhealthy rivers can be for wildlife and…
How long do insects live?
Insects are the most successful creatures on earth. They were here before the dinosaurs and there are now over 800,000 different species across all continents!
Serrated wrack
This brown seaweed lives in the lower shore and gets its name from the serrated edges to its fronds.
How to install a water butt
Water butts lower the risks of local flooding and will reduce water bills by conserving the water you already have. They're great for watering the garden, refilling the pond - or even washing…
Cock's-foot
Cock's-foot is a common, tussocky grass of grasslands, woodland rides and cultivated ground - its fluffy, pinky-beige flower heads are quite distinctive.
Greater knapweed
The ragged-edged, purple flower heads of Greater knapweed bloom on sunny chalk grasslands and clifftops, and along woodland rides. They attract clouds of butterflies.
Purple-loosestrife
A tall plant, purple-loosestrife can form dense stands of bright purple flower spikes in wet habitats like reedbeds, fens and marshes.
Wood melick
Wood melick is a slender, drooping grass that grows in dense patches in ancient woodlands and along shady banks. It has nodding flower heads, with brown, egg-shaped spikelets that contain the…
My back-to-school
As a child growing up in Ghana, Patience never took an interest in what was going on in the garden. Now, she’s growing her own flowers and vegetables every week, both at the Centre for Wildlife…
Water-plantain
Water-plantain is an aquatic plant of shallow water and muddy banks. In bloom over summer, it displays tall branches of loosely clustered, pale lilac flowers.
Pineappleweed
Pineappleweed is an introduced species that has become a widespread 'weed' of disturbed ground, such as pavements and roadsides and gardens. It has feathery leaves and yellow flower…