ALL PHOTOS CLICK FULL SCREEN.
This is a quick visual guide to wild flowers and garden escape or planted varieties I've spotted recently on local walks around my district. As much a guide for myself as for others.
Coltsfoot. Photographed in spring. April May.
Tansy. Seen June July.
Great or Hairy Willowherb. June July. Several smaller varieties of this with smaller flowers but all pink.
The more familiar Rose Bay Willowherb along with Ragweed (in yellow at front.)
Ragweed (close up detail.)
Spiraea Salicifolia. If it has a common name I can't find it. Bottlebrush maybe?
What it looks like in a group.
Valerian. It has a faint sweet smell.
Orange and yellow hawkweed. Found in meadows May June July on-wards. Fine in meadows but an increasing menace in garden lawns as it spreads rapidly from garden to garden.
Mountain Bluet. Seen in parks/grasslands June July. Very similar to cornflower.
Cornflower.
Heath Bedstraw. Also called Baby's Breath. Grows in grasslands in May June July. Tiny, less than knee high but clearly visible due to it's abundance in grassy meadows.
Buddleia or Butterfly Bush. June on-wards. Medium to tall plant. Sometimes head height or more.
Honeysuckle. April May on-wards. Sweet smelling.
Hydrangea. Can be pink to blue colour depending on soil it grows in.
Hypericum (hidcote?) May on-wards. Popular in gardens and in retail park borders. Golfball to fist sized flowers. Several different varieties of Hypericum hence the question mark as to variety.
It's smaller cousin nearby. Potentilla. Looks similar but smaller flowers.
Yellow or garden Loosestrife. May June July on-wards. Purple Loosestrife grows around park ponds or water. This yellow stuff grows in grasslands or anywhere, usually in thick bunches like this.
Meadow Vetchling. Grows in grass and on road verges usually. May on-wards.
Vetch. Tufted? May on-wards. Several different varieties purple to yellow but similar tiny double sided leaf formation that's distinctive.
Purple clover. White variety as well. May on-wards. Low growing.
Musk Mallow. Waist high or taller.
Mugwort. Silver variety in this instance. Tall plant over waist high. June July etc.
Selfheal. Prunella Vulgaris. June July in parks/ grasslands. Small. Ankle high usually.
Viper's Bugloss. Knee high. May June July on-wards.
Thistle. Many different variety of thistle from purple to white. All spiky. Insects love them though.
Yarrow. June July on-wards.
Trifolium. Tiny yellow flowers spreading close to ground level. One flower I had not seen before. June July.
Hogweed. Not to be confused with giant hogweed which can grow to ten feet tall or more this is waist high only. May June July. Similar to cow parsley and other umbellifers.
Meadow Cranesbill. Grows in grasslands and light woodlands. June on-wards.
Helenium. Waist high garden and public park plant. July to October. Used in borders.
I've had a lot of fun and pleasure on walks over the decades noticing flowers, birds and insects as well as surrounding scenery so this post is hopefully giving outdoor walkers some extra enjoyment by knowing what the various flowers are at this time of year in the UK. I have a UK wild flower book in the house but weirdly many of these flowers featured here are not in it so that's why I thought it might be useful as an extra visual guide. If I find any more flowers not on this list I may do another post in Autumn.