Woods and Roads

I was in a woodland near Llangenny last Thursday - with many great things to see and record - perhaps the highlight being this:

Sweet Cicely, Creithig bêr or Myrrhis odorata

It may not actually be a native but has been mentioned in print over many years as a plant that grows along the Grwyne Fawr River. This is the first time I saw it in that wild-growing habitat.

Then yesterday two of us set out for my spring long walk in rather cold, later wet but ultimately pleasant weather.

The view back from Heol Cefn y Gaer as we set out from Defynnog

Heol Cefn y Gaer is clearly an old track - now a bridle path that takes the ridge south of Defynnog towards Cray and beyond before meeting up with the still used road known as Heol Senni.

This took us through six 1km recording squares so involved some paper-juggling as we proceeded.

In all we made 164 records of 110 different species.

Silver Birch, Bedwen arian or Betula pendula

Wood-sorrel, Suran y coed or Oxalis acetosella and

Intermediate Polypody, or Polypodium interjectum

Brychgoed Welsh Independent Chapel

(There were some interesting naturalized plants in the walls - Snow in Summer and Caucasian Stonecrop - and copious Maidenhair Spleenwort which we didn't see anywhere else all day.)

Detail picture from Sue:

This was very common all along the old byway:

Wood-sorrel, Suran y coed or Oxalis acetosella

And Sue spotted one small patch of this gem.

Moschatel, Townhall Clock or Adoxa moschatellina

Fan Frynych with Pen y Fan behind to the left taken from Heol Cefn y Gaer.

More pictures from Sue: