Between 2019 and 2024, over 20 events and activities about wildflowers and other flora were organised across the North Isles. These included a bryophyte identifcation workshop, wildflower walks in Sanday, Eday, North Ronaldsay and wild plant recording walks in North Ronaldsay, Eday and Papay.
You can send plant records to Orkney's county recorder for plants, John Crossley email: [email protected] or join a national recording scheme like irecord.
Here's a few the rarer plants that can be found in the North Isles, or those that have been recorded in only a few locations previously but that may also occur elsewhere. Have you seen any of them?
| Common name | Latin name | Where has it been recorded before? | More information (species.nbnatlas.org) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Garden Angelica | Angelica archangelica | Westray | NBNSYS0000003704 |
| Hart’s tongue Fern | Asplenium scolopendrium | Rousay, Wyre | NBNSYS0000002039 |
| Sheep’s Bit | Jasione montana | Eday, Sanday, North Ronaldsay | NBNSYS0000004297 |
| Juniper | Juniperus communis | North Ronaldsay, Rousay, Shapinsay | NBNSYS0000004634 |
| Scottish Primrose | Primula scotica | Papa Westray, Westray, Rousay, Shapinsay, North Ronaldsay | NBNSYS0000003925 |
| Yellow Bartsia | Parentucellia viscosa | Eday | NBNSYS0000004135 |
| Oysterplant | Mertensia maritima | Eday, Egilsay, North Ronaldsay, Sanday, Stronsay, Westray | NBNSYS0000004018 |
| Wild Pansy | Viola tricolor | Eday, North Ronaldsay, Rousay, Sanday, Shapinsay, Stronsay | NBNSYS0000002944 |
| Harebell | Campanula rotundifolia | Is this plant lurking somewhere in Orkney? It is found in Sutherland and Caithness | NBNSYS0000004288 |
(Tim Dean)
How about planting some wildflowers in your garden or creating a wildflower meadow?
Planting a wildflower area of any size is an excellent way to conserve wildflowers, create wildlife habitat and help pollinators such as bumblebees and butterflies.
There are lots of wildflower seed mixes available to buy, but ensuring that the flowers you plant are native to the area is important to retain the assemblages of wild plants that have developed naturally together over time. It is also important to bear in mind that individual species will be adapted to the unique environmental conditions of a region or area, so it is best to grow plants from seed that has been collected in the geographical area they will be planted.
The North Isles Landscape Partnership Scheme held events to collect seeds and growing plug plants for planting out. It's an easy and rewarding way to create a native wildflower plot. Here are a few tips for collecting and planting wildflower seeds.
