In Search of Irish Ladies Tresses in Devon - August 2024

 On my way back to Cornwall from a family day out to Dartmoor in July, we found the road closed and a diversion in place not far from Tavistock. This sent us down a narrow country lane which went past some really nice looking bog pasture. I stopped to take a look around and thought the bog flora was quite impressive, given that much of Dartmoor is dry and over-grazed. Once home, I did some reaearch and found that Irish Ladies Tresses had been recorded here for many years, but not seen since 1994.

Given this incentive to re-find it, I visited the area in mid August to record the monad. I searched all over the area but unfortunately I didn't find any, but here's what I did find of interest.

 

Lanceolate Spleenwort on a roadside wall. Much like Black Spleenwort, but the fronds are tapered to the base and not triangular. Also, the stipe is not blackened near the base and the sori are smaller in this species too.

Asplenium obovatum

Carnation Sedge was in fruit in the boggy areas. It's characterised by the fruits being large and loose as illustrated in the photo.

Carex panicea

Slender Knapweed (formerly inadequately called Chalk Knapweed) on a road verge by the bog. You can tell this apart from Common Knapweed by the slender capitulas, less than 14mm wide and the dark part of the bracts are lanceolate, not ovate and do not overlap each other.

Centaurea debauxii

 

On a boggy flush down a hillside were numerous Oblong-leaved Sundews, an insect eating plant.

Drosera intermedia

In the same area were clumps of Floating Club-rush "in flower" as it were. I'd not seen these growing on soil before. In Cornwall I see them floating in ponds and puddles.

Eleogitons fluitans

 

Cross-leaved Heath up the slope in the drier parts.

Erica tetralix

Back to the road verge and there was a colony of Common Hemp-nettles.

Galeopsis tetrahit

 

A typical bog habitat for the carniverous Oblong-leaved Sundew.

 

A plant that only grows in very wet places is Marsh St. John's-wort, quite unlike the other species of Hypericum but the same family of course.

Hypericum elodes

 

Trailing St. John's-wort in the drier parts.

Hypericum humifusum

 

The beautiful flowers of Slender St. John's-wort, this plant has orange buds before the flower opens.

Hypericum pulchrum

 

Bog Pimpernel looking great as ever in the bog.

Lysimachia tenella

 

A few Bog Asphodels were still flowering, though most were in seed, as shown in the third photo.

Narthecium ossifragum

 

A short distance away was a golf course with not much growing on it, but I found some young Royal Fern growing in a roadside ditch next to it. A lovely plant.

Osmunda regalis

 

Back on the edge of the bog were rafts of White-beaked Sedge

Rhynchospora alba

 

Quite numerous in places was the diminuitive Lesser Skullcap.

Scutellaria minor

 

Devil's-bit Scabious with their lovely blue flat-topped flowers were found by the roadside.

Succisa pratensis

 

My final find of note was a single plant of Ivy-leaved Harebell amongst clumps of Purple Moor Grass.

Wahlenbergia hederacea

 I don't often get to record in Devon, but it's good to go and see plants in areas other than your local one. I didn't find the elusive Irish Ladies Tresses and they may well now be extinct at this site, but I found lots of other nice species. I might return next season for another look perhaps?

Take Care

Dave