My vocation
Elaine has spent her life surrounded by wild places; when she started to volunteer with BBOWT she realised that nature conservation was the job of her dreams. As well as looking after nine nature…
Elaine has spent her life surrounded by wild places; when she started to volunteer with BBOWT she realised that nature conservation was the job of her dreams. As well as looking after nine nature…
A familiar 'weed' of gardens, roadsides, meadows and parks, red clover has trefoil leaves and red, rounded flower heads. It is often used as fodder for livestock.
The song of the Roesel's bush-cricket is very characteristic: long, monotonous and mechanical. It can be heard in rough grassland, scrub and damp meadows in the south of the UK, but it is…
Dyer's greenweed is a classic plant of hay meadows, heaths and open woodlands. It has upright stems with loose clusters of bright yellow, pea-like flowers in summer.
For our regular volunteers, weekly work parties on our nature reserves are not just about helping to protect local wildlife. They are also a chance to catch up with old friends, meet new ones and…
Pepper saxifrage is a classic plant of unimproved hay meadows and roadside verges. It's upright, branching stems carry umbrella-like clusters of creamy-yellow, flowers in summer.
The true fox-sedge is a rare and threatened plant in the UK. It relies on lowland floodplain meadows and damp habitats, which are rapidly disappearing. Look for reddish-brown flowers in summer.…
A sure sign that spring has arrived, the Cuckooflower blooms from April. Look out for its delicate, pale pink flowers in damp meadows and ditches, and on riverbanks.
The pincushion-like, lilac-blue flower heads of Devil's-bit scabious attract a wide variety of butterflies and bees. Look for this pretty plant in damp meadows and marshes, and on riverbanks…
The egg-shaped, crimson flower heads of Great burnet give this plant the look of a lollipop! It can be found on floodplain meadows - a declining habitat which is under serious threat.
Often growing in swathes along a roadside or field margin, the oxeye daisy is just as at home in traditional hay meadows. The large, white, daisy-like flowers are easy to identify.
A familiar 'weed' of gardens, roadsides, meadows and parks, White clover is famous for its trefoil leaves - look out for a lucky four-leaf clover in your own garden!