Wood Forget-me-not
Although Water Forget-me-not may have been the source of many early garden varieties of this popular plant, most are now forms of Wood Forget-me-not. A pretty plant with bright blue flowers, Wood Forget-me-not can be found along woodland rides and edges, in ancient and wet woods, and sometimes in hedgerows and verges as an escaped garden variety. It flowers between April and June.
Like many of our native plants, Wood Forget-me-not is an excellent source of nectar and pollen for all kinds of insects including bumblebees and butterflies. To encourage wildlife into your garden, try planting native flower species in your borders to provide a 'nectar-cafe'. To find out more about wildlife-friendly gardening, visit our Wild About Gardens website: a joint initiative with the RHS, there's plenty of facts and tips to get you started.
Water Forget-me-not
Water Forget-me-not was once more commonly known as Scorpion-grass because its curled clusters of sky-blue flowers resembled a scorpion's tail. It can be found in damp habitats such as riverbanks, fens, marshes and ponds, either submerged in shallow water or on surrounding damp ground. Its pretty flowers appear from June to September. Water Forget-me-not was the source for early garden varieties of this plant which were a favourite in cottage gardens.
Human activity, including the drainage of land for agriculture and development, has resulted in the disappearance of many of the UK's wetlands. The Wildlife Trusts are working closely with planners, developers and farmers to ensure our wetlands are protected. You can help too: add native plants and flowers, such as Water Forget-me-not, to a wildlife-friendly pond and its margins, and provide shelter for amphibians and nectar for insects. In partnership with the RHS, The Wildlife Trusts' Wild About Gardens initiative can help you plan your wildlife garden.
Comfrey
Common Comfrey is a hairy plant of damp ground and is often found beside rivers, in fens and ditches, and on roadside verges and waste ground. It displays clusters of bell-shaped pinky-purple flowers from May to July and often grows in clumps. It has become an important plant for organic gardeners as its roots reach deep into the soil making it rich in minerals and its leaves can be used for slug control, as a fertiliser and as a composting aid.
Some of our most abundant species are often treated as 'weeds' when they appear in the garden. Yet they can be extremely beneficial to wildlife - providing food for nectar-loving insects and shelter for minibeasts - and also helpful to the gardener; Common Comfrey has many uses, for example. Try leaving wilder areas in your garden, such as patches of clover in your lawn, nettles near the compost heap and Common Comfrey by the pond, and see who comes to visit... To find out more about wildlife-friendly gardening, visit our Wild About Gardens website: a joint initiative with the RHS, there's plenty of facts and tips to get you started.
Bogbean
The starry white flowers of Bogbean can bring the green waters of a pond to life in spring. Found in shallow ponds, fens, bogs and marshes, this aquatic perennial blooms from March until June. Its common name comes from the leaves which are shaped a little like those of broad beans, but it doesn't really do this attractive flower justice.
Human activity, including the drainage of land for agriculture and development, has resulted in the disappearance of many of the UK's wetlands. The Wildlife Trusts are working closely with planners, developers and farmers to ensure our wetlands are protected. You can help too: add native plants and flowers, such as Bogbean, to a wildlife-friendly pond and its margins, and provide shelter for amphibians and nectar for insects. In partnership with the RHS, The Wildlife Trusts' Wild About Gardens initiative can help you plan your wildlife garden.
Marsh Gentian
The Marsh Gentian is a rare plant of acidic bogs and wet heathlands whose bright blue, trumpet-shaped flowers appear from July to October, contrasting with the pinks and purples of the heath. There are particularly strong populations of this flower in the New Forest, where a white variety has also occurred.
Windswept heaths and boggy moors are an iconic feature of the UK's landscape and are the result of hundreds of years of low-impact human activities such as livestock-grazing and scrub clearance. Yet development and the decline of traditional farming methods have caused many of these precious habitats to be lost - over 80% of lowland heathland in the UK has disappeared in just 200 years. The Wildlife Trusts manage many heathland habitats for the benefit of all kinds of wildlife including Marsh Gentian. By volunteering for your local Trust you can help too, and you'll make new friends and learn new skills along the way.
Autumn Gentian
Found on dry, calcareous grasslands and sand dunes, Autumn Gentian is a late-flowering biennial - the leaves grow in the first year, and the flowering stem appears in the second. It can sometimes be found growing in large groups, its spikes of purple blooms appearing from July to October.
The Wildlife Trusts manage many grassland and coastal habitats for the benefit of all kinds of wildlife. Careful grazing with traditional breeds, hay-cutting at the right time and scrub clearance are just some of the ways these fragile habitats are kept in good condition - supporting wildflowers like Autumn Gentian and, in turn, invertebrates and the larger animals that prey on them. By volunteering for your local Trust you can help too, and you'll make new friends and learn new skills along the way.
Greater Plantain
Pushing its way up through the cracks in pavements, the long, straw-coloured flower spikes of Greater Plantain are a familiar sight to many of us. This persistent plant also grows in lawns, grasslands, field edges and other dry and grassy places. Commonly known as 'Rat's Tail' because of the scaly, tail-like appearance of its flowers, Greater Plantain blooms between June and October, but its leaves can persist through the winter in some areas.
Many of our so-called 'weeds' are beneficial to wildlife, providing food for nectar-loving insects and shelter for minibeasts. Try leaving wilder areas in your garden, such as patches of Greater Plantain and Red Clover in your lawn and Stinging Nettles near the compost heap, and see who comes to visit... To find out more about wildlife-friendly gardening, visit our Wild About Gardens website: a joint initiative with the RHS, there's plenty of facts and tips to get you started.
Bugle
The deep blue flower spikes of Bugle can be found carpeting damp grasslands, scrub and woodland clearings scrub and grassland on fertile soils. Spreading by means of overground runners that frequently root, it flowers between April and July and is attractive to a variety of insects including White-tailed Bumblebees, Green-veined White Butterflies, Silver Y Moths and Common Carder Bees.
Like many of our native plants, Bugle is an excellent source of nectar and pollen for all kinds of insects including bumblebees and butterflies. To encourage wildlife into your garden, try planting native flower species in your borders to provide a 'nectar-cafe'. To find out more about wildlife-friendly gardening, visit our Wild About Gardens website: a joint initiative with the RHS, there's plenty of facts and tips to get you started.
Wood Sage
Unlike other sages, Wood Sage has very little scent and so has little value as a herb in cooking. It can be found on sand dunes, heaths and coastal cliffs, and along dry woodland rides, preferring acidic soils. Upright spikes of straw-coloured flowers can be seen from July to September and its plentiful seed provides food for many birds.
The Wildlife Trusts look after many coastal and heathland habitats for the benefit of all kinds of plants and wildflowers, and are working closely with farmers, landowners and developers to promote wildlife-friendly practices in these areas. We have a vision of a 'Living Landscape': a network of habitats and wildlife corridors across town and country, which are good for both wildlife and people. You can support this greener vision for the future by joining your local Wildlife Trust.
Skullcap
Skullcap can be found on damp ground such as marshes, fens, riverbanks, pond margins and canalsides. This delicate flower blooms between June and September and is pollinated by long-tongued bees; it is also the only foodplant of the Skullcap Leaf Beetle - a yellowy-brown beetle with a black head and four spots on its back.
Human activity, including the drainage of land for agriculture and development, has resulted in the disappearance of many of the UK's wetlands. The Wildlife Trusts are working closely with planners, developers and farmers to ensure our wetlands are protected. You can help too: add native plants and flowers, such as Skullcap, to a wildlife-friendly pond and its margins, and provide shelter for amphibians and nectar for insects. In partnership with the RHS, The Wildlife Trusts' Wild About Gardens initiative can help you plan your wildlife garden.
