{"id":1699,"date":"2012-04-25T03:25:59","date_gmt":"2012-04-25T08:25:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rdnhs.org.uk\/blog\/?p=1699"},"modified":"2012-04-25T03:25:59","modified_gmt":"2012-04-25T08:25:59","slug":"clayfield-copse-15-april-2012","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rdnhs.org.uk\/blog\/clayfield-copse-15-april-2012\/","title":{"rendered":"Clayfield Copse – 15 April 2012"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/strong>There was a strong northerly breeze blowing on the afternoon of Sunday, April 15, bringing with it a few short showers of rain and hail.\u00a0 Nevertheless, 23 members assembled by Clayfield Copse, next to Caversham Park, to look at spring flowers, led by Michael Keith-Lucas.\u00a0 No-one could have been disappointed \u2013 most of the spring flowers that could have been expected were there and in flower, giving proof, if any were needed, that it is not always necessary to travel far to visit good sites.\u00a0 To be able to learn from the knowledge and experience of our leader was an added bonus.\u00a0 We learned how to distinguish the two common violets, the Common Dog Violet Viola riviniana, <\/em>and the Wood Dog Violet Viola reichenbachiana, <\/em>the polyploid and diploid forms of Lesser Celandine Ranunculus ficaria, <\/em>the male and female Dog\u2019s Mercury Mercurialis perennis, <\/em>male and female Yew trees Taxus baccata, <\/em>and why Sorbus torminalis <\/em>is called in English the Wild Service Tree.\u00a0 Differences between the floras of Blackhouse Wood, which is ancient woodland, and Clayfield Copse, part of which was old park land which had been neglected and become woodland, were noticed.\u00a0 The old park land still had some Lebanon Cedars Cedrus libani <\/em>to emphasise the point.\u00a0 Besides the Wild Service Tree, two other unusual members of the Rosaceae <\/em>were noticed \u2013 the Wild Pear Pyrus pyraster, <\/em>and the Wild Apple Malus sylvestris <\/em>subsp. sylvestris. <\/em>The Goldilocks Buttercup Ranunculus auricomus <\/em>and an unusual Comfrey which when keyed out proved to be the White Comfrey Symphytum orientale<\/em> added to our lists.\u00a0 Green Woodpeckers Picus viridis <\/em>were seen and heard throughout the afternoon, and at one stage there were several voles, scuttling among the fallen wood and leaf litter.<\/p>\n

Report by David Cliffe<\/em><\/p>\n