Herstmonceux

Meeting date: 6 May 2006

(Leader: Paul Harmes)

Although ‘tetrad bashing’ may have its drawbacks, it certainly paid off at Herstmonceux when the sixteen members present split up in the morning and gathered nearly 500 records in four tetrads. Some of the interesting plants included the uncommon Bromus racemosus (Smooth Brome), Valerianella locusta (Common Cornsalad), Ranunculus auricomus (Wood Buttercup) and several records for R. ficaria ssp. bulbifera (Lesser Celandine).

After meeting up again for lunch, a visit was made to Wartling Wood to look for Ranunculus tripartitus (Three-lobed Crowfoot) which was last recorded in the 1990s; unfortunately the habitat must have changed as the wood was very dry and mainly carpeted with bluebells which, because there was no sun, were an intense blue. Their fragrance hung heavy on the air. In the one damp area the only plant of note was Carex acutiformis (Lesser Pond-sedge).