As the single splendid sun has so ardently refused to shine this season the thousands strong bursts of floral sunshine that brighten-up our verges are now all the more welcome - offering a smattering of golden summery hews on even the dullest of dreary days.
Fleabane is in full flower now - where allocation has been made for it to compete with less diminutive herbage - and is finding favour with a diverse array of invertebrates. It is the primary nectar source for the Small Copper and a secondary nectar source for no fewer than seventeen other British butterfly species which emphasises its great importance. The nectary (from where the nectar is collected by insects) is shallow making it of particular value to insects with short proboscises. It is altogether less popular with certain parasitic insects as it boasts insecticidal properties and the vapour from the burning of its dried leaves was once widely used to repel fleas – hence the name 'Fleabane'.
Fleabane with small tortoiseshell.
Also of a cheerily yellow disposition are the St.John's Wort (Hypericum) family comprising common, square-stemmed and tutsom on Radipole. Certain of the 100's strong St.John's Wort family are cultivated and used in herbal extracts for the treatment of depression - so not only does it appear bright and happy but it contains natural brightness and happiness! Conversely St. John's sap is photosynthetic and can cause skin to blister on contact when in direct sunlight, a fact true also of many of our umbellifors (carrot family), most notably hogweed - making verge management a mildly edgy pursuit.
Square-stemmed SJW - bright and delicate enough to lift any minor malaise.
Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) is more notable on the drier paths of Lodmoor, (in particular the south path adjacent to the promontory) but certain specimens add their distinctive spongy texture to Radipole too. Tansy is often referred to by the colloquial name 'Golden Buttons' which the photo shows to be rather apt. Again it has had a long and varied history of medicinal uses dating from at least ancient Greece and has been used to treat rheumatism, worms, boils and in the Middle Ages to promote abortion.
The golden button, flowerheads of Tansy.