Llanelli Naturalists Newsletter - March 2003 - No 69
George Hutchinson
Leader George Hutchinson
Nine members met on the south side of the roundabout near the WAM works, Machynys (SS512983) on a dry mild sunny day with a light north-easterly breeze. In fact it hadn’t rained for weeks and we were experiencing a small Indian summer with what turned out to be the sunniest September for eleven years in parts of the country. Due to active construction work at Machynys it was decided to move the venue to some unexplored waste ground at the south end of Morfa. Before driving off to the roundabout to the north-east the leader pointed out that the book with CD-rom, The New Atlas of the British and Irish Flora, had been launched at RBG Kew a few days before, arising from work for the Atlas 2000 project. The newspaper coverage was of interest to the Llanelli Naturalists. On the Wednesday The Times reported that the richest square in Wales lay west of Llanelli boasting 742 species [SN40]. Members of the society should be proud of this, having contributed so many of the records.
The potential for bamboo to take off as a garden throw-out due to it becoming too large was demonstrated with plantings on the centre of the roundabout (SS519986) of tall Golden Bamboo (Phyllostachys aurea), under-planted with Maximowicz’s Bamboo (Pleioblastus chino), and Black Bamboo (Phyllostachys nigra) at its northern end, the almost black canes proving elusive from across the road.
It was hoped to concentrate on aliens and garden-escapes for the afternoon and we were not disappointed with the area proving so rich there was no need to move elsewhere. The waste ground of the demolished Morfa De-tinning Works to the north-east of the roundabout was explored, our target being the tall ivy-clad chimney-stack in the distance with the year 1919 in white brick high on its northern side, a monument to the hive of activity which must once have occupied the site.
A small Wallflower Cabbage (Coincya monensis ssp. cheiranthos) with rape-like stem leaves was the first puzzler. Its typically jagged-edged pinnately-lobed basal leaves were eventually detected, initially being hidden by the surrounding vegetation. Vervain (Verbena officinalis) was a delicate flowering feature over much of the site. Only terminal pale mauve flowers remained in the seeding spikes making the plants somewhat elusive.
The undersides of Colt’s-foot leaves (Tussilago farfara) were coated with a small orange circular rust. It was photographed by Richard Pryce and downloaded at NMW to be identified from the screen print as Puccinia tussilaginis by Roy Perry (see photo on previous page). As we were now close to the SS59E/J tetrad boundary, just to the west of the stack, the placement of records could easily be worked out using the GPS. Both are examples of the advance in equipment available to the public in just the last few years, but at a Pryce!
An amazing mound of earth was colonised by several aliens. Conveniently the two commonest Montbretias were growing together. Montbretia (Crocosmia x crocosmiiflora) in full orange flower and, by now, yellowing narrow leaves, and Aunt-Elisa (C. paniculata) with its wide pleated leaves and, by now, with long seeding branches to the inflorescence. Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) formed the ground cover with Fox-and-cubs (Pilosella aurantiaca). Three seedlings of Cotoneaster were at the base. Wall Cotoneaster (C. horizontalis) was too small to show its herring-bone branching but will surely start seeding nearby. Entire-leaved Cotoneaster (C. integrifolius) will be one of the most invasive and Maire’s Cotoneaster (C. mairei) with a white tomentose underside to the leaves is one of the smallest leaved of this type (1.5-3cm). It has been found planted as a hedge in Carms. and seems to tolerate the shears. A solitary plant of this was noted the same day near the south entrance to Llanelli railway station (SS507993), possibly having grown up from seed.
More aliens were still being found on this rich mound, with gone-over Pendulous Sedge (Carex pendula) and the tiny plant of lawns, Slender Speedwell (Veronica filiformis). We were attracted to the NE corner of the site by dense Vervain but on the way found seedlings of Tutsan (Hypericum androsaemum) in red fruit. A mystery composite was found here in the ashy ground. It had a single capitulum, now matured to a buff colour and slightly coriaceous (leathery) small-toothed leaves. This was later identified, partly aided by the composite collection at NMW, as a Shasta Daisy cultivar (Leucanthemum x superbum cv.). There are about fifty in cultivation! Much of the site was only starting to be colonised as demonstrated by the minuscule Flowering Current (Ribes sanguineum).
The party moved to examine the west slope of the steep bank alongside the chimney-stack and here things really started to take off. The glabrous-leaved Garden Speedwell (Veronica longifolia) was in seed, the plant being first recorded in the county exactly forty years before by R. F. May, at the Blaenhirwaun collery (SN51). Dotted Loosestrife (Lysimachia punctata), Snow-in-summer (Cerastium tomentosum), Small-flowered Evening-primrose (Oenothera cambrica) and the soft hairy Lady’s-mantle of gardens (Alchemilla mollis) soon followed. All this was to the north of the stack but to the immediate south on the bank the small-leaved Hooker’s Hebe (H. brachysiphon) was in seed, a first for Carms.
Alongside was a low arching and much branched Snowberry with tiny terminal inflorescences of pink flowers, many only just emerging and with scarce fruit in the form of tiny spherical drupes (5.5mm), white on the shaded side grading to a deep shiny red on the sunny side. This was identified with reservations as Hybrid Coralberry (Symphoricarpos x chenaultii) and later shown to be its procumbent cultivar ‘Hancock’ which is recommended for ground cover by the RHS and appears to be the only taxon available for S. x chenaultii in the The Plant Finder, where it is listed for many garden-centres. All previous records for the hybrid are in recent times and from ruderal areas, for example, near Cwmdwyfran and Furnace. Records probably refer to this cultivar, raised in Canada in about 1940. It is occasionally seen planted across South Wales as a ground-cover plant along pavement borders and on banks in recently landscaped urban areas.
Early autumn butterflies now appeared including Clouded Yellow, Red Admiral and Common Blue. The first, not of course to be confused with the Brimstone, was enjoying a glorious end to the summer. A small climb over the bank to examine the area east of the chimney soon revealed two small settlement pools. Their steep banks were approached with extreme caution by just a few. The northerly was dominated by Bulrush (Typha latifolia) but the other had more botanical interest. Richard Pryce was able to trawl out a stonewort, later det. at NMW by Alan Orange as Chara contraria. High up on the bank there was a fine stand of Balm (Melissa officinalis), spotted by Tony Lewis, and small plants of Rock Stonecrop (Sedum forsterianum). Meanwhile, the flat ground around was explored by the main party and revealed Rose Campion (Lychnis coronaria), and saplings of birch with doubly serrate but softly pubescent leaves. It was easy to shout ‘hybrid birch’ but alas Silver Birch (Betula pendula) can have pubescent twigs and leaves at this stage of growth. Further work required! Before exiting near the stack again, a hybrid Willowherb (Epilobium ciliatum x E. parviflorum) was found near the bank. Ill-formed seeds and a semi-cleft stigma led one to condider a hybrid.
The return along the southern edge of the waste ground gave Water-plantain (Alisma plantago-aquatica) and Jointed Rush (Juncus articulatus) in a now dried up hollow. Slender Rush (J. tenuis) occupied the well-trodden exit to the main track-way under the pylons.
The final curiosity near the road was a large tilted white panel acting as a solar panel in the late afternoon sun for up to nine dragonflies, all Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum). They appeared in perfectly aligned aircraft formation on the panel, reminding one of images one would expect in a photographic guide to dragonflies. Occasionally one would take off and another land at the top horizontal edge.
The 23 noteworthy taxa, mentioned above to be growing in this small area of land, have truly world-wide origins: Continental Europe (7); E. Asia and N. America (both 4); W. Asia, S. Africa and New Zealand (all 1); Native but cultivated (3); Horticultural (2).
The party returned to the roundabout with the sounds of the hurly-burly at the nearby fair reminding them that aliens were certainly to the fore this balmy autumn afternoon.
