Plant of the Day

Friday 30 September 2022

The Rhinanthus minor (yellow rattle, corn rattle, hay rattle, money-in-the-purse, penny grass, rattle grass) has just about finished shedding seeds for the next season of this annual which is semi parasitic on grass.

Plant of the Day

Friday 31 December 2021

The partially parasitic species Viscum album (mistletoe) is well-known for its waxy white berries found on the female plants. It forms a globose shape and can parasitise more than 200 tree and shrub species.

Plant of the Day

Wednesday 28 July 2021

The annual Rhinanthus minor (yellow rattle) is known as the ‘meadow maker’ and is a great plant to start with if you wish a lawn to become more biodiversity. In early spring the seed germinates and the roots seek out the root systems of nearby plants, especially grasses. The yellow rattle draws water and nutrients from them, suppressing the growth by as much as 60%. This reduce vigour in the grasses so allowing other plants to establish due to the reduced competition. The common name comes from the yellow flowers and the seeds rattling in the seed cases. In some of the images across a meadow at Waterperry Garden, Oxford, there is a beehive with bees used to pollinate the orchard and meadow plants.

Plant of the Day

Thursday 13 August 2015

 An beautiful wildflower meadow on the sand dunes of the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, with a large population of the delicate, white-flowering Euphrasia officinalis (eyebright). This low-growing annual plant is found in short grasslands at the top of cliffs, windswept heaths, and downlands. Species of Euphrasia are generally semi-parasitic, feeding on nutrients obtained from the roots of grasses, so they are useful in controlling vigour so allowing a greater range of plants to thrive.