the localities for Anne's latest plate are:
top left - Crowberry - Tafts, Rousay
top middle - Goldenrod - cliffs below Fillets, Graemsay
top right - Carnation Sedge - Inyana Hellia, Costa, Birsay

bottom left - Devil's-bit Scabious - Carlin Geo, Stronsay
bottom middle - Glaucous Sedge - Head of Work, St Ola
bottom right - Common Sorrel - west side Auskerry

More from the cliffs....

September comes

We appear to have been thrown into autumn very, very suddenly. The wet meadows of Meadowsweet have lost their creamy frothy flowers and the flower-heads are now blackened. The salt marshes which barely a fortnight ago were resplendent with Sea Aster are now blasted and the lilac flower-heads have been thrown into disarray and confusion. On a more personal level, the Sycamore leaves are now piling up in the front garden and this week I've seen children playing helicopters with Sycamore wings.

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Sea Aster at its best 

 

Talking of salt marshes, I went to the Ouse in Finstown in preparation for a wildflower walk this weekend and looking at the Sea Aster mentioned above, it was clear that autumn had stepped across the threshold. It hadn't taken long for the combination of high tides and autumn winds to turn the salt marsh into a bit of a mess with seaweeds and detritus draped across the sea-washed turf and its plants - Sea Plantain and Sea Arrow-grass were festooned with marine bunting.

Perennial Sowthistle

There were some plusses though. At this time of year the Perennial Sowthistle lights up the backshore with golden yellow orbs. And it's worthwhile peering into the marsh or among the shingle for two of the salt marshes understated jewels - Glasswort and Sea Blite. Along the shores of the Ouse I managed to find a few plants resplendent in their autumn colours.

Glasswort

 

 

 

Glasswort and 'blasted' Sea Aster

lilac flower-heads have been thrown into disarray and confusion

 

Sea Blite

 

two gems of the links

                                Autumn Gentian and Fragrant Orchid - two gems from recent classes

Just a few notes regarding Anne's last three plates. The localities  are as follows:

Wetland plate
Monkeyflowers - Tormiston Mill, Stenness
Marsh Cinquefoil - Mill Dam of Rango, Sandwick
Early Marsh Orchid - Como, Rendall
Amphibious Bistort - Loch of Ouse, Deerness
Mare's-tail - Loch of Ouse, Deerness

Sea cliffs - i
Spring Squill - Brough of Deerness, Deerness
Eyebright - Roseness, Holm
Sea Ivory - Head of Geo, Wyre
Mountain Everlasting - Lobust, Rousay
Alpine Meadow-rue - Orphir Bay, Orphir

Sea cliffs - ii
Scottish Primrose - Inga Ness, Sandwick
Cat's-ear - Stephen's Gate, Eday
Wild Thyme - Holm of Burghlee, Shapinsay
Autumnal Hawkbit - Hyndgreenie, Papa Westray
Roseroot - Brough of the Berry, Hoy

A wetland and two cliffs plates

Here's the last 3 months' plates.....

The first painting in the set is the last of the wetland flowers plates.
Plate 1:From top left clockwise we have, monkey flower, marsh cinquefoil, heath spotted orchid, northern marsh orchid, amphibious bistort and mares tail.

Following this are the first two of the clifftop flowers plate.
Plate 2: From top left, clockwise, the flowers are spring squill, the lichen -  sea ivory, eyebright,
alpine meadow rue and mountain everlasting.
Plate 3: From top left, clockwise, the flowers are scottish primrose, wild thyme, cat's ear, roseroot and autumn hawkbit.

Shore, dunes, links and dry grassland

Shore, dunes, links and dry grassland

                                                        Sea Bindweed

We were able to see how dunes and links were formed by following the plants and wildflowers that stabilised the shifting sands. At No4 this succession takes place over a distance of at least 150 metres whereby the shore sand is stabilised firstly into yellow dunes, usually with Lyme Grass, and subsequently into grey dunes which are often characterised by Marram Grass. At Eastside the process takes place over a much shorter distance and the three stages can be found over a width of less than 30 metres.

Our visit coincided with the first trumpet blooms of Sea Bindweed – this is its only location in Orkney and grows no nearer to the county than Montrose in the east and the Hebrides in the west. By contrast the Lesser Meadow-rue was at its best and over the years I have never seen it looks so well. It is an understated plant and one which occurs only on South Ronaldsay, Sanday and Deerness.

                                                      

                                              Lesser Meadow-rue

                                                        

No4

Shore: Orache, Sea Sandwort, Sea Mayweed
Yellow dune: Lyme Grass
Grey dune: Marram Grass
Dump: Colt’s-foot, Groundsel
Cliff: Hedge Bindweed, Red Campion

Eastside

Track: Lady’s Bedstraw, Yellow Rattle, Field Forget-me-not
Links: Lady’s Bedstraw, Eyebright, Red Clover, White Clover
Shore: Oraches, Sea Sandwort, Oysterplant, Sea Rocket
Yellow dune: Sand Sedge, Lyme Grass, Sea Couch
Grey dune: Ragwort, Angelica, Hogweed, Sea Bindweed, Lesser Meadow-rue, Red Bartsia,
                   Yarrow, Spear Thistle, Smooth Sowthistle, Creeping Thistle, Eyebright, Bird’s-foot Trefoil,      
                   Lady’s Bedstraw, Field Forget-me-not

Birds and invertebrates:
Meadow Brown, Common Blue, Large White, Sand Martin

Acknowledgements: thanks to Martin Moncrieff for the Lesser Meadow-rue images