20 June 2021

 

Put my wellies on this morning to have a close look at Boundary Fen - the area to the left of the 13th on the Red.  A lot of work has been done on this area by Abingdon Green Gym under the guidance of English nature.  For a number of years the area has been overgrown with reed, giving little chance for other plants to flourish.  

You can see now that large tracts of reeds have been cut down.

It is clear that this is having a positive effect on biodiversity.  Marsh Lousewort is seen as one of the key plants in this ecosystem and is growing strongly in various spots.

Marsh Lousewort Pedicularis palustris [Boundary Fen]

Another uncommon plant thriving here is Bog Pimpernel.  I've looked for this elsewhere in the ditches on the Green without finding any, but there is quite a lot in this area.  It's small pink flowers only tend to open in full sun.

Bog Pimpernel Anagallis tenella [Boundary Fen]

Other plants growing here include:

Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata [Boundary Fen]

Water Figwort Scrophularia auriculata [Boundary Fen]

Greater Birdsfoot Trefoil Lotus pedunculatus [Boundary Fen]

Meadow Vetchling Lathyrus pratensis [Boundary Fen]

Creeping Thistle Cirsium arvense [Boundary Fen]

Marsh Bedstraw also grows here and is one of a number of Bedstraws on the course at the moment.  Heath Bedstraw is common on the Green course and has denser flowers.  Lady's Bedstraw is yellow and grows on the Red course and on the Doghouse range.  Cleavers is the most common and is the one stuck to your clothes after a trip to the deep rough.

Marsh Bedstraw Galium palustre [Boundary Fen]

Heath Bedstraw Galium saxatile [15th Green]

Lady's Bedstraw Galium verum [15th Red]

Cleavers Galium aparine [Boundary Fen]

On the area to the left of the 13th Red you can find both White and Black Bryony scrambling over their surrounding vegetation.

White Bryony Bryonia dioica [13th Red]

Black Bryony Tamus communis [13th Red]

In the wood behind the fen I came across Tutsan, a shrubby member of the Hypericum family.

Tutsan Hypericum androsaemum [13th Red]

In the same family, but a fraction of the size is Trailing St John's-wort, which you can find in the rough near the green on the 3rd Green.

Trailing St John's Wort Hypericum humisusum [3rd Green]

Finally, at the back of the 14th tee I came across a Large Skipper butterfly, the first one that I have seen at Frilford.

Large Skipper Ochlodes sylvanus [Boundary Fen]

31 May 2021

The golf competition season is well underway.  I was in Wales last week taking Luke to the Welsh Youth Open and am up at Woodhall Spa this week taking him to another competition.  

In between I managed a quick walk round the course.  Conditions were rather murky first thing and there weren't many birds to photograph, but new flowers continue to appear.

Starting in the car park there are a few more flowers on the wall, in addition to the Fairy Foxgloves:

Biting Stonecrop Sedum acre [Car park]

Rue-leaved Saxifrage Saxifraga tridactylites [Car park]

Common Poppy Papava rhoeas [Car park]

In the trees to the left of the 13th fairway Red I came across Sanicle - not a plant that I have encountered before.   

Sanicle Sanicula europaea [13th Red]

Common in shady spots, particularly around the reservoir is Bur Chervil.

Bur Chervil Anthriscus caucalis [3rd Red]

On waste areas on various spots around the course is White Bryony.  This plant is actually a member of the cucumber family, although this particular species is quite toxic.  This one was growing on the right of 15 Red.

White Bryony Bryonia dioica [15th Red]

If you've walked near the fairway anywhere on the Green course, you have almost certainly trodden on Bird's-foot, a tiny pea-like plant that is prolific on the short turf.

Bird's-foot Ornithopus perpusillus [15th Green]

Another tiny plant growing on the Green is Parsley Piert with distinctive lobed leaves but flowers that are green and too small to see.

Parsley Piert Aphanes arvensis [14th Green]

On the thirteenth Red I found a Mayfly by the stream.  This is actually a different species than the ones on that I saw earlier in the month on the 3rd Blue.

Mayfly Ephemera danica [13th Red]

There are a surprisingly large number of shieldbug species in the UK.  Fortunately there are various internet sites devoted to them.  I found this one on the 18th Blue - I think that it's a Red-legged Shieldbug.  It was actually one of three - the other two fell off the leaf when I moved it with the camera - I'm not sure if this was a deliberate escape ploy or poor balance.

Red-legged Shieldbug Pentatoma rufipes [18th Blue]