This is a great thread to learn about the local flora...and some excellent pics too! I've recently offered to volunteer for Plantlife to take part in a wildflower count. Thought that maybe some of the members might be interested in taking part too (if they are not in some way already) as there seems to be a lot of interest and knowledge here to be shared. You don't have to have a good knowledge of wild plants (thankfully for me!) just an interest but obviously the more you know the easier and quicker it would be. I have yet to do my walk but when the weather clears up I will have a go and post up what I find.
http://www.plantlife.org.uk/things_to_do/wildflowers_count/"Many of our more common species of flower can easily be taken for granted, often overlooked while we study rare and endangered species. But common species are important and can be under pressure from problems such as pollution, or they may be doing well because of land management practices. This is why we need to count our more common wildflowers; they are indicators of how healthy our countryside is, and the more counts there are the better.
Wildflowers Count has three different ways to take part. All surveys are done within a 1km square that is selected to be within easy reach of your home. And there is a new list of 99 wildflowers to count. You can choose which survey you would like to take part in, as best suits your interests or experience.
•Wildflowers Path - take a 1km walk through your square, taking note of any of the wildflowers in the Wildflowers Count ID guide (and the type of habitats) along the way.
•Wildflower Plots - the basis of the old Common Plants Survey. We provide you with a small square plot, and a small linear plot, square, within which we ask you to note any of the 99 wildflowers from the guide, along with how abundant they are.
•Become a Super-surveyor! Some volunteers told us that they felt frustrated that they could only record the few wildflowers in the ID Guide, so we have changed things. Those who feel confident enough will be able to identify as many plants as they can. "