Weird plants
From flowers that smell like wee to leaves that look like belly buttons, here are some of our strangest plants!
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Water vole by Terry Whittaker/2020VISION
Chwilio
Bulbous buttercup
The bulbous buttercup has the familiar butter-yellow flowers of its namesake, but grows from a bulb-like 'corm' (a swollen underground stem). Look for it on chalk and limestone…
Common evening-primrose
An introduced species, Common evening-primrose is now naturalised on waste ground, roadside verges and railway cuttings. It has long been used to produce the herbal remedy, evening-primrose oil.…
Elder
Elder is an opportunistic shrub of woods, hedges, scrub, waste and cultivated ground. Its flowers and berries are edible, but it's best to gather wild food with an expert - try it at a…
Whimbrel
The whimbrel is very similar to the curlew, but a little smaller and with a striking face pattern. Its eerie call is a series of seven whistles; listen out for it around the coast as its passes…
My dinner party
Niamh loves to feed the birds, so makes natural feeders out of pinecones and berries, to help them through the winter. She’ll tie this to a branch so that the birds can feast from it safely.
How to have an eco-Christmas
Whether you celebrate a big family Christmas, or you just give out a few cards to your friends and neighbours to wish them a happy time, here are some quick tips for a greener Christmas!
Bugle
Often found carpeting damp grassland and woodland clearings, the blue flower spikes of bugle are very recognisable. A short, creeping plant, it spreads using runners.
Rainbow trout
With a silvery body, and purple, pink and bluish streaks down its flanks, the rainbow trout lives up to its name. Popular with anglers, it is actually an introduced species in the UK.
My observatory
Bill has spent much of his life on Hampstead Heath. Although he feels like he's miles away from anywhere, a break in the trees offers one of the best views of London City - when it's…
False oat-grass
A fluffy-looking grass of rough grassland, roadside verges and disturbed ground, False oat-grass is very familiar and often overlooked; in fact, it can help to stabilise dunes and shelter small…
Field maple
An inconspicuous tree for much of the year, the Field maple comes to life in autumn when its lobed leaves turn golden-yellow and its winged fruits disperse in the wind. Look for it in hedges and…