It has been fantastic to see such a diverse aquatic and wetland plant community developing on Phase 1 in the last couple of weeks. Common reed, or Phragmites australis to be scientific is colonising very well over much of the re-developed area, along with other characteristic wetland species such as the reedmaces, Typha species and a range of herbaceous plants including these I photographed last week....
Water-plantain, or Alisma plantago-aquatica, is a tall species growing up to 1m. It is common throughout much of England and is characterised by it's broad lanceolate leaves and pale pink flowers.
Celery-leaved buttercup, Ranunculus sceleratus is an annual, growing to 50cm. It flowers between May and September and is found commonly on wet banks and ditch sides.
Marsh dock, or Rumex palustris, is a scarcer species, only occurring in lowland south and east England. It reaches 60cm, producing flower whorls in June through to August.
The excellently named trifid bur-marigold, Bidens tripartita, can be found on the margins of freshwater bodies. It is an annual, growing to around 60cm and is widespread throughout England and Wales.
This is a species of water crowfoot, Ranunculus sp., a group of annual or perennial plants that are closely related to the buttercups. Indeed their white coloured flowers look just like white buttercups.
And finally, a stunning species, amphibious bistort, or Persicaria amphibia, is a very common and widespread perennial with spikes of pink flowers. This species often forms colonies of floating leaves and protruding flower spikes across the water surface. Interestingly, it can also occur as a terrestrial form which is much scarcer.