2005 Dunwich Suffolk 2nd June One Day Meeting
A dozen of us met at the cliff top cottages on the National Trust property ofDunwich Heath, Suffolk, on what was to turn out a long walk of about six miles on a hot day. The warden had invited us to take stock of what was in the garden which used to be rabbit grazed but had now been effectively fenced off. Outside, the turf was extremely short but showed us straightaway a good example of many of the clover species found here - Trifolium suffocatum (suffocated clover) and T. subterranean (burrowing clover showing whole areas of white flowers, with T. ornithpodioides (fenugreek clover).
In the garden were T. striatum (knotted clover), T. glomeratum (clustered clover) and T. arvense (haresfoot clover); in the now lusher grass we also found Erodium cicutarium (common storksbill) along with its stickier, paler cousin E. lebelii (sticky storksbill) which tends to be a more coastal species. In the drive was an excellent flowering Malva neglecta (dwarf mallow) along with the ubiquitous, for these parts, Crassula tillaea (mossy stonecrop). Around these lighthouse cottages were bare ground plants such as Aphanes australis (slender parsley piert, from its fanciable ability to break open rocks) and Urtica urens (small nettle).
On the steps covered with Carex arenaria (sand sedge) on the way down to the shingle beach were tiny specimens of Hypochaeris glabra (smooth catsear) which had now closed their heads as it was midday. Crambe maritima (sea kale) was in magnificent flower and nearby we found a small patch of Lathyrus japonicus (sea pea) with a mass of purple heads, said to have once saved Suffolk villagers from famine. A great rare find was a few clumps of Corynephorus canescens (grey hair- grass) trying to hide amongst the marram. In the dunes were hundreds of specimens of Calystegia soldanella (sea bindweed) but not yet flowering.
Whilst walking along the beach a peregrine falcon gave a dramatic display overhead.
By the sluice at Minsmere we lunched surrounded by tall yellow Lupinus arboreus(tree lupin) wafting their delicious scent over us. These were completely unaffected by the American blue aphid which can devastate these plants. Our circular tour now led us inland towards the Eel's Foot pub where we had to stop for refreshment as it was so hot, one field edge on the way regaled in Thlaspi arvense (field pennycress). The water meadows and the stream which revealed Hydrocharis morsus-ranae (frogbit) and Nuphar lutea (yellow water-lily) took us through beech woodland and back over the heather-studded heath back to our cars. On the way a female four- spotted chaser dragonfly flew into my boot which stunned it but gave us the opportunity to take a picture of her.
STEPHEN CLARKSON