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Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve
Aston Rowant National Nature Reserve is located on the north-west escarpment of the Chiltern Hills, in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It has an area of , and most of it is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is listed as a Grade 1 site in ''A Nature Conservation Review''. The reserve is in several sections, mostly in the parish of Lewknor in Oxfordshire, with smaller sections in the parish of Stokenchurch in Buckinghamshire. The reserve is home to plants and butterflies of chalk grassland. The flowers include at least seven species of orchid and the Chiltern gentian; the butterflies include the silver-spotted skipper and the Adonis blue. As well as chalk grassland, the reserve contains woodland with beech, yew, and juniper. Overhead, reintroduced red kites are resident. Habitats The Aston Rowant reserve is managed by Natural England assisted by the Oxford Conservation Volunteers. It offers a nationally important habitat of cha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oxford Clay
The Oxford Clay (or Oxford Clay Formation) is a Jurassic marine sedimentary rock formation underlying much of southeast England, from as far west as Dorset and as far north as Yorkshire. The Oxford Clay Formation dates to the Jurassic, specifically, the Callovian and Oxfordian ages, and comprises two main facies. The lower facies comprises the Peterborough Member, a fossiliferous organic-rich mudstone. This facies and its rocks are commonly known as lower Oxford Clay. The upper facies comprises the middle Oxford Clay, the Stewartby Member, and the upper Oxford Clay, the Weymouth Member. The upper facies is a fossil poor assemblage of calcareous mudstones. Oxford Clay appears at the surface around Oxford, Peterborough and Weymouth and is exposed in many quarries around these areas. The top of the Lower Oxford Clay shows a lithological change, where fissile shale changes to grey mudstone. The Middle and Upper Oxford Clays differ slightly, as they are separated by an argillaceou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Spotted Orchid
''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'', the common spotted orchid, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae. ''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'' is one of Europe's commonest wild orchids. It is widespread across much of Europe, with the range extending eastward into Siberia, Mongolia and Xinjiang. The species is also reportedly naturalised in the Canadian Province of Ontario. ''Dactylorhiza fuchsii'' is a herbaceous perennial plant ranging from in height. The inflorescence is a dense-flowered spike, produced in June–August, that is at first conical then cylindrical. The flower colour can vary from white to pale purple with purple spots, a symmetrical pattern of dark purple loops or dots and dashes. The lip has three lobes. The bracts are usually shorter than the flower. The lip is smaller than that of the very similar ''Dactylorhiza maculata'' and has three deeper cuts. The middle lobe is more than half as large as a lateral lobe. Some colonies are highly perfumed, attractive t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dog Rose
''Rosa canina'', commonly known as the dog rose, is a variable climbing, wild rose species native to Europe, northwest Africa, and western Asia. Description The dog rose is a deciduous shrub normally ranging in height from , though sometimes it can scramble higher into the crowns of taller trees. Its stems are covered with small, sharp, hooked prickles, which aid it in climbing. The leaves are pinnate, with 5–7 leaflets. Leaves have a delicious fragrance, when bruised. The dog rose blooms from June to July, with sweet scented flowers which are usually pale pink, but can vary between a deep pink and white. They are in diameter with five petals. As other roses it has a quintuscial aestivation (see sketch A in diagram). Unusually though of its five sepals, when viewed from underneath two are whiskered on both sides, two are quite smooth and one is whiskered (or bearded) on one side only. Flowers mature into an oval, , red-orange hip. The dog rose is hardy to zone 3 in the UK ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ragged Robin
''Silene flos-cuculi'' (syn. ''Lychnis flos-cuculi''), commonly called ragged-robin, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. This species is native to Europe and Asia, where it is found along roads and in wet meadows and pastures. In Britain it has declined in numbers because of modern farming techniques and draining of wet-lands and is no longer common. However, it has become naturalized in parts of the northern United States and eastern Canada. Description ''Silene flos-cuculi'' forms a rosette of low growing foliage with numerous flower stems 20 to 90 cm tall. The stems rise above the foliage and branch near the top of the stem and end with the pink flowers which are 3–4 cm across. The flowers have five narrow petals deeply divided into four lobes giving the flower an untidy, ragged appearance, hence its common name. The calyx tube is five-toothed with ten stamens. The leaves are paired, with the lower leaves spoon-shaped and stalked. The m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Small Scabious
''Scabiosa columbaria'', called the small scabious or dwarf pincushion flower, is a widespread species of flowering plant in the genus ''Scabiosa'', native to Europe, Africa, and western Asia, from Sweden to Angola. In the garden it is a short-lived deciduous perennial plant, perennial. In the wild in Europe it prefers to grow in calcareous grasslands. Growing to tall by , it has simple branched grey-green leaves, and pale lavender or blue multi-petalled flowers from summer to autumn. Subspecies The following subspecies are currently accepted: *''Scabiosa columbaria'' subsp. ''banatica'' (Waldst. & Kit.) Diklic *''Scabiosa columbaria'' subsp. ''caespitosa'' Jamzad *''Scabiosa columbaria'' subsp. ''columbaria *''Scabiosa columbaria'' subsp. ''pratensis'' (St.-Lag.) Braun-Blanq. References {{Taxonbar, from=Q159263 Scabiosa, columbaria Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Plants described in 1753 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yellow-wort
''Blackstonia perfoliata'' or yellow-wort is a species of flowering plant in the family Gentianaceae found around the Mediterranean Basin, but extending into northwestern Europe. Description Yellow-wort grows tall, with stiff, branching stems. The leaves are glaucous, opposite and entire, the upper ones perfoliate, being united at the base. It bears terminal cymes of bright yellow, stalked flowers, across. The calyx is deeply divided into 6–10 linear lobes or sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coine ...s, spirally arranged, free or nearly free from each other at the base and shorter than the corolla. The petals number six to ten and form a short tube. There are six to ten adherent stamens and a two-lobed stigma.McClintock D. and Fitter, R. ''The Pocket Guide ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Marjoram
Marjoram (; ''Origanum majorana'') is a cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavours. In some Middle Eastern countries, marjoram is synonymous with oregano, and there the names sweet marjoram and knotted marjoram are used to distinguish it from other plants of the genus ''Origanum''. It is also called pot marjoram, although this name is also used for other cultivated species of ''Origanum''. History Marjoram is indigenous to Cyprus, the Mediterranean, Turkey, Western Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Levant, and was known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as a symbol of happiness. It may have spread to the British Isles during the Middle Ages. Marjoram was not widely used in the United States until after World War II. The name marjoram (Old French: ''majorane''; ) does not directly derive from the Latin word (major). Marjoram is related to Samhain, the Celtic pagan holiday that would eventually become Halloween. It has also been used in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scabious
''Scabiosa'' is a genus in the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) of flowering plants. Many of the species in this genus have common names that include the word scabious, but some plants commonly known as scabious are currently classified in related genera such as ''Knautia'' and '' Succisa''; at least some of these were formerly placed in ''Scabiosa''. Another common name for members of this genus is pincushion flowers. Etymology The common name 'scabious' comes the Latin word ''scabiosus'' meaning 'mangy, rough or itchy' which refers to the herb's traditional usage as a folk medicine to treat scabies, an illness that causes a severe itching sensation. Description Some species of ''Scabiosa'' are annuals, others perennials. Some are herbaceous plants; others have woody rootstocks. The leaves of most species are somewhat hairy and partly divided into lobes, but a few are smooth and some species have simple leaves. The flowers are borne on inflorescences in the form of heads ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eyebright
''Euphrasia'', or eyebright, is a genus of about 450 species of herbaceous flowering plants in the family Orobanchaceae (formerly included in the Scrophulariaceae), with a cosmopolitan distribution. They are semi-parasitic on grasses and other plants. The common name refers to the plant's use in treating eye infections. Many species are found in alpine or sub-alpine meadows where snow is common. Flowers usually are borne terminally, are zygomorphic, and have a lower petal shaped like a lip. The most common flower colours are purple, blue-white, and violet. Some species have yellow markings on the lower petal to act as a guide to pollinating insects. Alternative names, mainly in herbalism, are ''Augentrostkraut, Euphrasiae herba, Herba Euphrasiae'' and ''Herbe d'Euphraise''. Use in herbalism and medicine The plant was known to classical herbalists, but then was not referred to until mentioned again in 1305. Nicholas Culpeper assigned it to the Zodiac sign Leo, claiming that it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greater Butterfly Orchid
''Platanthera chlorantha'', commonly known as greater butterfly-orchid, is a species of orchid in the genus ''Platanthera''. It can be found throughout Europe and Morocco. The name ''Platanthera'' is derived from Greek, meaning "broad anthers", while the species name, ''chlorantha'', means "green-flowered". Greater butterfly-orchid is similar to lesser butterfly-orchid, ''Platanthera bifolia'', which is about the same size, but with smaller flowers. Greater butterfly-orchid is a herbaceous perennial of medium height. Its leaves are broad, shiny and elliptical, with a large pair at the base, and much smaller, more lanceolate leaves up the stem. The flowers are greenish-white, scented of vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ..., with spreading sepals and petals. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Purple Orchid
''Orchis mascula'', the early-purple orchid, early spring orchis, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Description ''Orchis mascula'' is a perennial herbaceous plant with stems up to high, green at the base and purple on the apex. The root system consists of two tubers, rounded or ellipsoid. The leaves, grouped at the base of the stem, are oblong-lanceolate, pale green, sometimes with brownish-purple speckles. The inflorescence is long and it is composed of 6 to 20 flowers gathered in dense cylindrical spikes. The flower size is about and the color varies from pinkish-purple to purple. The lateral sepals are ovate-lanceolate and erect, the median one, together with the petals, is smaller and cover the gynostegium. The labellum is three-lobed and convex, with crenulated margins and the basal part clearer and dotted with purple-brown spots. The spur is cylindrical or clavate, horizontal or ascending. The gynostegium is short, with reddish-green ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frog Orchid
''Coeloglossum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the orchid family Orchidaceae. It has long been considered to have only one species, ''Coeloglossum viride'', the frog orchid. Some recent classifications regard ''Coeloglossum'' as part of the larger genus, ''Dactylorhiza'', so that ''C. viride'' becomes ''Dactylorhiza viridis''. Other sources continue to keep ''Coeloglossum viride'' separate. Under either name, the species has a wide distribution across the cooler parts of the Northern Hemisphere, covering much of Europe, non-tropical Asia (Russia, Japan, China, the Himalayas, etc.), much of Canada and parts of the United States (Alaska, Northeast, the Appalachians, Great Lakes Region, Northern Great Plains, and Rocky Mountains). It is typically found growing in moist, rich soil in wet meadows, moist or wet deciduous woods and thickets, and is frequently found on steep slopes. Etymology The generic name ''Coeloglossum'' is derived from the Greek ' meaning "hollow tongue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
