Despite being called Paris QUADrifolia, this plant can have up to eight leaves in a whorl. I found stems with four, five and six leaves close enough together to get in one shot. It grows in carpets in a local wood and is one of the plants used as an ancient woodland indicator.
As you can see it flowers at the same time as the bluebells (Endymion non-scriptus)
Endymion non-scriptus? Again a new name..? omg :[
non-scripta better E?
Current genus is Hyacinthoides and species non scripta Evert, however it has had many botanical names in the past.
Philomel, I've tried to get these to take in my garden, I think they are a great plant to baffle the neighbours with ;)
Are they in your garden or in the wild?
Both in my garden and the wild Baa. I thought they were Hyacinthoides but my son has borrowed my bible and has left me with the antique ones!! So that's an archaic name Evert - way before your time LOL
Our woods are carpeted with bluebells and they're rampant in the gardens where they've been introduced. Unfortunately someone has also brought Spanish bluebells into mine, but the insects seem to enjoy them just as much.
Even more unfortunate is that wild flower seeds sown along the verges of new roads around here have obviously been sourced from mainland europe and there are lots of Spanish bluebells flowering on them now. Should think this is a serious threat to the locals! :(
Philomel, I was just wondering the different genus name.. I've heard those called Scilla non-sripta, Hyacinthus non-scripta, etc.. I've got some looking like these too, but they're bought. There is also some white and pink ones. *trying to rememper the name*
Philomel, we've gotten lots of new species from south and eastern Europe, and invasive Lupines (L. polyphyllus) from america. They grow on the best places for wildflowers and spread, so soon original native plants will be more and more rarer...
Yes, it's a real problem.
This is happening all over the world with both plants and animals (eg grey squirrels BEG)
We have the white and pink too (bluebells, not squirrels lol) - they seem particularly popular in the west country (i've seen a lot in Cornwall). The white do seem to occur naturally in my local woods as a tiny % of the population.
We don't have grey squirrels, but the 'red ones'. Not sure how long anymore if people are driving on them all the time.. *G*
Yes, realised yours are (were?) red. In Jersey they have put up some rope squirrel crossings between trees above roads for them to cross safely. It's such a small island and they want to help their squirrels in any way they can. Not practical in most places, but we're doing similar for the dormice, where it's practical, to mitigate for developments.
Sorry Philomel, I was talking about the Paris being in your garden LOL not very clear, was I?
We have Spanish and English Bluebells in the garden and they are really becoming a weed. The Spanish clumps were already established under the brambles before we got here.
Oh. sorry Baa, that's the second time i've misunderstood this morning - better go back to bed, then get up afresh and try again LOL! Yes, if i'd thought about it would be quite hard to baffle the neighbours with bluebells.... or would it?
Don't have any Paris in my garden, only in the woods. They must need true woodland conditions as they are one of the indicator spp for ancient woodland (don't like being moved, not an opportunist?) So to grow in a garden you'd have to have real woodland conditions i imagine. I often wonder about fungal alliances in these cases too.
Good point Philomel, the front garden was, like the back, covered in brambles for 30 years and it has an Ash tree (we keep cutting down), holly and a cotoneaster, so it's had a lot of leaf mould over the years and is in almost full shade being north facing. Still doesn't stop it from baking into brick each summer and being impossible to walk on in winter ;) It keeps trying to turn back into scrubland, which is a bit frustrating! Clay soil is so much fun LOL
Here squirrels "walk" on plastic covered electricity lines. What do you mean 'realised'? They are grey here on winter..
'realised' means i know - but saying "i know" makes me sound like a bighead. - Don't answer that!
Definition : - to be (or become) aware of.........
Yes, yours are only coloured grey - not different species (I know you realise that LOL)
Red = Sciurus vulgaris
Grey = Sciurus carolinensis
I've noticed that as you go east and south through europe the red squirrels become darker. In Slovenia they are sort of charcoal coloured even in summer.
In the UK a few show a strange form that develops a white tail in summer - it's been traced to a particular gene.
The greys can be confusing too, as some develop quite red parts to their coats
We dont cull Greys here in the winter anymore because our Reds turn a grey colour during that season.
LOL Don't want to pot the wrong one!
The main way to distinguish between them seems to be the fuller tail of the greys, with its silvery 'halo' of hairs.
If you see that it's a grey, if not it's either a red or a moth-eaten grey. And of course the reds have those lovely ear tufts in winter.
Thats weird... Do you really concider Paris quadrifolia to be a hard plant to grow...? It does well everywhere there is a little shade and a little water. Maybe you didn'æt get enough of the rhizomes when you moved them?
I have traded a lot of Paris; my forest is full of them, and my garden too. They have never failed for me...
Welcome to DG Arsenic!
I just don't have the right conditions for Paris here, the clay gets too dry too quickly in summer for them.
Glad to have your ID expertise with us Arsenic ... maybe Baa will gracefully retire ;)
Ahh now Cyclamen do well here as long as it's in the right spot. There's no happy medium in the garden here, with some spots constantly soggy wet and others bone dry, one day the wild garden will look right! I'm determined it will :)
