FREE INSIDE Wildflowers of Ireland POSTER

MEADOW BUTTERCUP

Ranunculus acris Fearbán féir

One of several native buttercups, all poisonous, and by far the prettiest. Its yellow five-petalled flowers shine in meadows and moist grassland from April to October. Deeply cut, narrow, pointed leaves that grow at the nodes or joints of stems identify it from other buttercup species.

COMMON BIRD’S-FOOT-TREFOIL

Lotus corniculatus Crobh éin This low-growing native plant bears yellow – sometimes red-tinged – peaflowers in small clusters. Found on roadsides, on stone walls, sandhills and grassy places, its name comes from the seedpods that resemble a bird’s foot. It flowers from May to September.

FOXGLOVE

Digitalis purpurea Lus mór

Graceful plant of woodland, mountains, sea cliffs and roadsides, Foxglove buzzes with bumblebees in summertime. Up to 75 mauve, thimbleshaped flowers are held in a tall spike, with large rosette of leaves below. Flowers from June to August.

COMMON DOG-VIOLET

Viola riviniana Fanaigse

This is no shrinking violet as it seems to crop up in so many habitats – woodlands, grassy banks and old walls. Its delicate violetcoloured flowers bloom from April to June. Look closely and see purple lines that guide tiny insects into the mouth of the flower.

BUGLE

Ajuga reptans Glasair choille Bugle grows in broadleaved woodland and damp, shady places. Its blue-violet flowers are in spikes on erect, fourangled stems, each flower with a tiny upper lip and a long lower lip, divided into four lobes. Shiny leaves often have a bronze tinge. Native perennial, it flowers in May and June.

SCARLET PIMPERNEL

Anagallis arvensis Falcaire fiáin

Prostrate annual with five orange-red petals, creeps along dry, gravelly soil, waste ground and vegetable patches. Opens in sunshine and closes when the clouds come over. Pretty native species that flowers from May to October.

WOOD AVENS

Geum urbanum Machall coille

Native perennial with five yellow petals on erect stems, this species likes to grow in hedgerows, gardens and shady places. Fruits are bur-like with little hooked spines. Flowers May-September.

COW PARSLEY

Anthriscus sylvestris Peirsil bhó Lining roadways and lanes throughout Ireland between April and June, this graceful, downy plant has clusters of small, white flowers in umbels or upside-down umbrellas. Don’t eat it as it could be mistaken for Hemlock – a fatal error. One of its other names is – Devil’s Parsley!

GERMANDER SPEEDWELL

Veronica chamaedrys Lus cré talún

A delight to come across on a country walk, this little plant has exquisite fourpetalled blue flowers. At the centre is a white ‘eye’ and two long stamens, one on either side of the stigma. Stems have two opposite rows of long white hairs. Flowers from March to July.

FIELD FORGET-ME-NOT

Myosotis arvensis Lus míonla goirt

This little annual often finds itself in gardens but nobody minds as it is quite attractive. Pretty little cupshaped blue flowers, each with five petals and a yellow centre, open on hairy stems that unfurl slowly between April and September, in arable fields and disturbed ground.

RAGGED-ROBIN

Silene flos-cuculi Lus síoda

Often found in boggy places, ditches and damp meadows, rosy pink flowers with delicately-fringed ragged petals make this an unmistakeable species. Loved by long-tongued bees and butterflies who feed on its nectar. Flowers May to August.

PYRAMIDAL ORCHID

Anacamptis pyramidalis Magairlín na stuaice Take a coastal walk between June and September and you may see this pretty orchid. A dense cluster of small, rose pink to magenta flowers is held in a coneshaped head that lengthens into a cylindrical spike of 50100 flowers.

PURPLELOOSESTRIFE

Lythrum salicaria Créachtach

Ditches, marshes, riverbanks and meadowland are all home to this stunning wildflower. Tall, erect spikes of reddish-purple flowers, each with crumpled petals, are widespread from June to September.

SILVERWEED

Potentilla anserina Briosclán

This creeping perennial is widespread in habitats such as coastal shingle, sand or in damp grassland. Bright yellow, fivepetalled flowers grow among muchdivided, silky leaves, the silvery undersides revealing how it got its common name. Flowers May to August.

COMMON SPOTTED-ORCHID

Dactylorhiza fuchsii Nuacht bhallach

A wildflower that comes in many different colours and designs, this little beauty grows quite widely in meadows, marshes and on country roadsides. It bears its handsome, delicately-patterned pink, mauve or purple flowers in spikes from May to August.

OXEYE DAISY

Leucanthemum vulgare Nóinín mór

Perfectly described by ‘Nóinín mór’ or big daisy, this is also known as dog daisy. It is a meadow flower that also grows along grass verges and embankments. Tall stems bear the white and yellow heads from May to September.

WILD PANSY

Viola tricolor Goirmín searraigh

A native annual, like a small version of garden pansies, they come in combinations of yellow, white and violet-blue, each with a little spur at the back. They show their pretty heads from April to November. A yellow and white subspecies grows in coastal areas.

NAVELWORT

Umbilicus rupestris Cornán caisil

Old stone walls, ruins, cliffs and stony banks are this wildflower’s favourite habitats. Circular leaves with a dimple at their centre and spikes of pale green-yellow flowers make it an easy one to identify. Flowers from June to September.

HERBROBERT

Gentiana robertianum Ruithéal rí

Lovely native wildflower that seems to turn up everywhere from April to October. Pink, five-petalled flowers are on hairy stems surrounded by deeply-lobed leaves, often tinged deep red. It grows on waste ground, hedgerows, shingle and shady places.

LADY’S BEDSTRAW

Galium verum Bolach cnis

Traditionally used to stuff mattresses, this is a widespread native perennial with tiny bright yellow flowers in clusters on square stems and whorls of narrow, dark-green leaves. Found on sandy soil and heathland, it flowers from June to September.