Common wild flowers to find in the Dorset countryside

The Dorset countryside is recognisable by its rolling hills, and beautiful random patchwork appearance produced by small agricultural fields delineated by thick hedgerows. Small woodlands, copses, coastal areas and heathlands also provide a range of great habitats for a vast array of wild flowers.

It is one of my favourite things to take a walk in the Dorset countryside with my wild flower book in my pocket to see what new flowers I can find.

Flowering plants that grow on the grassy banks along roadsides are many and varied, and easy to find and identify. Here are some of the commonest flowers that can be found throughout the year in and around the Dorset countryside, described by their common names with latin names in brackets for reference.

Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis ), pop up from the ground from late January into March along roadside banks and in the woods. They are a sign that spring is on its way, and have pretty white bell-shaped flowers. Primroses (Primula vulgaris ) are another early sign of spring and have pretty pale yellow, five-petalled flowers, that can be seen flowering from March to May in similar locations.

Native English bluebells (Endymion non-scriptus ), are primarily woodland flowers, and provide a beautiful splash of blue. They can be found in huge swathes throughout Dorset woodland, on open downs and along the roadside. Also growing along roadside banks red campion (Silene dioica) stands out with its pretty deep pink five-petalled flowers. Wild garlic (Allium ursinum ) is another common plant along the roadside that can often be smelt before it is seen, but has a very pretty white flower and glossy green leaves.

Cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris ) is one of the most commonly seen flowers along roadsides, it towers above all the others with its large umbelliferous white sprays of flowers from May to June. Wild foxgloves (Digitalis purpurea ) are another tall perennial, with their deep pink spikes of tubular flowers, that can be seen from June to September.

Climbing plants that can be seen growing amongst the hedgerow include wild honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum ), with its sweet scented and very pretty yellow flowers; wild clematis (Clematis vitalba ), which is recognisable by its hairy seed heads that give it the common-name of "old man's beard", and the dog-rose (Rosa canina), a classic pink single-petalled climbing rose.

It is always an exciting moment to find a rare orchid, those found in Dorset include the bee orchid (Ophrys apifera ) and the spider orchid (Ophrys sphegodes ).

Reference:

Fitter, R., Fitter, A. and Blamey, M. (1980) The Wild Flowers of Britain and Northern Europe. Collins, London.