I came across the delightful flower Fleabane yesterday growing in the least diverse of our four fields. It is interesting in a couple of ways. Firstly it is yet another example of new plant species which are still coming up three years after we bought the site and altered the management of it to a wildlife-friendly regime. I suspect that this particular plant may have germinated because of some minor disturbance of the soil as I have been removing some Alchemilla mollis that had strayed into this particular field as a result of its former use as a quad bike track. Secondly it is a plant of, and indeed an indicator species for, marshy meadows. I have seen an old map and that clearly indicates that this part of this field was boggy at one time. It is the lowest part of the site and since it has been managed for wildlife and not had quad bikes compacting it the rushes in this area are spreading slowly but surely. In terms of meadows indicator species that makes it 35 for the site (including species of neutral, calcareous, acid and marshy meadows). Some of those species are not actually in the meadows, particularly the few calcareous indicators which of course are actually found on the drive or parking area. Nonetheless it is building up to an impressive total.
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