wild flowers

[Susie]

What 'wild' flowers do you grow in your gardens and how successful are they at supporting inverts?

[ChrisC]

tooo many to list and still early days for this garden to find out what is successful but i'll give it a go,
here's what i put in this year
Common Heather good around here so thought i'd plant some
Hogweed great for flies of all shapes and sizes
Marsh Marigold just a bit of colour for the pond
Water Mint had this before, unruly but from memory good for bees
Greater Stitchwort (i don't think it has made it)
Musk Thistle if it grows through everything else it's a majestic plant. if not i'll keep trying i just love these beauties.
Woad good for insects
Clary Sage no idea
Corn Poppy just wanted poppies
Common St Johns wort had it before and i can't remember
devils bit scabious not really had a chance to watch the scabious's perform but they are at the front of the border this year always seem popular in the wild though
field scabious as above
foxglove height colour and nectar (biennial is it's only downfall
greater Knapweed great looking flowers and nectar rich
Oxeye daisy a good composite flower for all sorts,
wild carrot had dozens of hovers over just one plant last year.
purple loosestrife another great one for inverts
vipers bugloss one of the first wild flowers i ever planted so i'll always have a soft spot for it. good for bees
white campion sweet scent, and popular
meadow sweet always seems to be something on it
meadow cranesbill from memory bees loved it in my old garden like herb robert self seeds quite readily (fingers crossed)
musk mallow another one i just love the flower on, couldn't tell you about inverts on it though
great Mullien not had this Mullien before but it always looks good in the wild, i'm keeping my fingers crossed

others (some of which i let grow rather than have planted)
marjoram excellent not only for nectar but only this afternoon i watch a Pyrausta egg laying on it
red campion very good, not only for campion and lychnis moths but i see most of my hoverfly larvae on campion
garlic mustard has to go down as excellent, at least 3 orange tip caterpillars and GV white yet to show
hedge woundwort good nectar plant and woundwort sheildbugs, it can get a bit unruly
does red valerian count? good nectar plant
hedge parsley only in it's 2nd year and i've been too distracted to really pay it enough attention. did have a GV white on it though
common valerian as above, too much else going on but a nice looker and smell if remember correctly
bedstraw gets buried under everything else
columbine ok for bees depending on what else I have in the garden
common agrimony no idea, another one that gets buried
Hemp agrimony one of my top choices beetles, bees, hovers, moths, butterflies a great all rounder
yarrow jury still out, i've never found it a particularly great plant, but that could be because of everything else
wild strawberry makes good ground cover, no grizzleds in the garden yet but it's here if they want it.
Privet, hawthorn, blackthorn too small at the moment but out of the 3 i've seen more on the hawthorn
Alder buckthorn, in purely for Brimstones and worked a treat
i'm pretty sure there is a rowan and a wayfaring tree out there too.
yellow loosestrife one i've not really taken much notice of but I've had Dentated Pug in the garden last 2 years so i'll be looking closer this year
herb robert (self sets everywhere) lovely plant good for bees, flowers forever nice foliage too. (the deer seemed partial to it out the front in the early spring)
Chicory (though i think i lost that last year) a lovely tall pale blue, but didn't notice too much on it
Honesty great plant, large white and orange tip caterpillars, bees and all sorts
Jacobbs ladder pretty flower, nice leaves
maiden pink pretty flower and i'm sure in the wild a better plant than it is my garden ( I just like the flower)
wild pansy as above
oxslip or cowslip i don't remember which for spring nectar
primrose as above
michaelmas daisy of some description good autumn nectar source.
yellow flag iris
Meadow buttercup not enough of it to really make it noticeable (yet)
alkanet was doing well out the front for bees until the pyracantha and ceanothus started flowering,
bergamot supposed to be a good bee plant but i don't really take too much notice when it's all out
celandine spring colour and nectar but i'd say the same space for lungwort would probably produce more bees
red clover (yes planted ) bees
feverfew gets lost in with everything else
spiked speedwell as above
lesser knapweed i don't need to rate this one,
common sorrel always gets leaf mined but maybe one day a desperate small copper might find it
tansy another one all the books mention like they do yarrow but i'm yet to be convinced but a nice button flower
purple toadflax good for bees
I think that covers most of what i have planted and that have survived the sandy soil. lots of "weeds" get left like self heal, betony, speedwells , a few willowherbs etc etc even wild rose of some description and Bramble if it isn't in the way.

if i think of anything else while i'm out there tomorrow i'll let you know

[JohnR]

I think that I will limit myself to three plants . For a tree I would chose a Salix and clear stem it to 6ft and pollard it. For a shrub it has to be the ubiquitous Buddleia and for a herb it must be the perennial wallflower ‘Bowles Mauve’, mine have not stopped flowering since I planted them several years ago in a bed sheltered from the north.
This year I am trying some Sweet Rocket (Hesperis matronalis), it's a biennial and has so far attracted Orange Tips and bees. It may be seen as an obnoxious plant because of its ability to self seed but I'll face that problem if it occurs.

[Susie]

Go out at dusk and the perfume of sweet rocket is intoxicating. I love it and my only complaint is that it is so short lived.

[Dave McCormick]

I have a lot I am growing, see if I can remember them all (take a while to go into details on how they are for wildlife so I'll do that with some). Early days so can't say how these fair until becomes fully established in a year or so. I had a few honeysuckle but oil man who was filling our tank spilled some on it and everything there died

Heather & Bell Heather (Good for bees, moths),
Birdsfoot Trefoil
Bog Asphodel (Just because they are rare in Co Down, NI due to bog destruction leaving only small areas of peat bog left in this part of Ireland)
Common Cotton Grass (Wonder how likley I'll get a large heath? )
Burdock
Bush Vetch
Corn Chamomile
Corn Marigold (Great nectar source, however 4 grew really big, bigger than others I have) still able to flower if cut and planted, one plant can priduce thousands of seeds
Corn Poppy (Just like them)
Opium Poppy (Native Irish one, has none of the opiates that the Himalayan one has so its a safe poppy and still looks quite nice)
Corncockle
Cornflower
Devil's bit Scabious (Narrow-Bordered Bee Hawk, Marsh Fritillary Etc...),
Eyebright (Nice little flower, keeps grass down)
Fleabane
Foxglove
Greater Trefoil
Hoary Plantain
Lesser Knapweed (Great nectar source)
Marsh Bedstraw
Marsh Cinquefoil
Marsh Ragwort (Non poisonous cousin of ragwort, can feed cinnabar moth caterpillars also, doesn't grow as big as ragwort)
Marsh Thistle (Not as common as spear and related thistles, doesn't grow as big either, so growing this as an alternative to those)
Meadow Buttercup
Meadowsweet (Like the antiseptic smell, heals cuts and attracts insects)
Ox-eye Daisy (Good nectar source for insects)
Common Figwort
Purple Loosestrife
Ragged Robin
Red Bartsia
Red Campion,
Red Clover,
White Clover
Red Rattle
Redshank
Ribwort Plantain
Rough Hawksbit
Scented Mayweed,
Sheep's Sorrell (I have a huge one with over 50 leaves, good for insects like small copper)
Sorrel (Same as above)
Water Avens
Wild Angelica
Wild Carrot
Yarrow
Yellow Flag Iris
Yellow Loosestrife
Yellow Rattle (Trying to attract grass rivulet, plus it keeps grass down),
Doves-Foot Cranesbill
Common Milkwort (Just like the small flowers)
English Stonecrop
Sea Campion, Sea Beet, Rock Samphire, Common Scurvygrass, Sea Mayweed (last 5 to see what coastal insects I can attract as I am less than a mile from the coast)
Harebell (Although its taking a long time to grow),
Viper's Burgloss (Because there has only been one record of it in this part of Northern Ireland so growing more will help bring it back),
Common Wintercress (Grows like a weed in patches here)
Shepherds Purse
Wild Thyme
Wild Strawberry,
Small Mouse ear (Just because its rare),
Spring Squill
Rosebay Willowherb
Bog Myrtle (although I think it died)
Water Mint (Although I am not sure its growing, I planted seeds in very damp compost that is always moist and something started to grow (only one) so have to see if that is it)
Spearmint (Love the smell, great for attracting insects)
Field Bindweed
Heart's Tongue Fern
Lesser Spearwort
Marsh Loosewort
Tormentil
Garlic Mustard
Cuckooflower
Nettles
Round-Leaved Sundew (Hey if a lot of my plants are wet bog/fen plants, might as well have this also, seeded loads, hope some grow and I can have this, won't benefit wildlife, but will conservation of it)
and also managed to grow a nice clump of various mosses and have a few lichen covered rocks for those lichen feeders. Also inquired about a seed mix that has species in it that has foodplants of 16 native butterfly species, so if I can get that, really would help a lot. Growing plants for conservation purposes too, so that is why partly I have a wide range, plus want to maximize the amount of wildlife I can get in my garden. Already have the trees (3English Oak over 15 years old, various willows (1 goat, 2 grey sallow, 3 common osier...aphids seem to attack these), 2 crab apple, 2 bird cherry (blackfly infested, had to spray them as they are only 5ft tall and not mature enough to handle the damage), 1 blackthorn, 1 elder, 1 downy birch, 4 rowan, 1 hazel, 3.5ft tall)

Also have 3 radish of some sort that somehow appeared at the edge of my garden.

Finally have a few bee orchids, but they take 8 years to grow and flower, so may have a LONG wait for those, my common spotted orchids flowered for the first time last year after 5 years of waiting.

With all that, just want a couple of buckthorn, its so rare now in NI that you rarely see a brimstone anymore which is sad also would like a couple of spindle, looks great in autumn turning orange and may get spindle ermine too.

Go out at dusk and the perfume of sweet rocket is intoxicating. I love it and my only complaint is that it is so short lived.

I have seen it attract narrow bordered bee hawk moths during the day which is great, sure smell it before you see it, the seed mix I want to get has it, and it will be great for insects for sure. Where I used to live there was 3 in a rocky area (probably dumped) next to woodland and at night lots of moths passed by.

I'd also recommend Red Valerian, great for butterflies, bees and moths and has long lived flowers. Where I lived before, there was a long stone wall with red Valerian covering it, was filled with painted ladies the time of the huge influx, also had large numbers of small torts and red admirals and peacocks, also silver-y moths and hawk moths also loved it.

Honesty great plant, large white and orange tip caterpillars, bees and all sorts

I tried growing it from seed, now have a lot of honesty that didn't grow well. May have to try again with it.

[ChrisC]

and i thought my garden list was long

[Dave McCormick]

and i thought my garden list was long

Dare I mention I missed a few? Groundsel, Coltsfoot, Hedge Garlic, Flax (Didn't know what it was until it flowered today) and Chickweed. Hopefully this "jungle" will be good for wildlife in future.

[hilary]

Dave's list could put many Nature reserves to shame!
I often get intrigued about what is nibbling various plants and grasses and have taken to going out with a torch at night to see what is doing the nibbling - so far very disappointing - all I find is slugs of varying sizes.

Last autumn when trying to sort out the veg garden (it gets very neglected in many areas) I kept coming across various caterpillars. In the past I would have dug it over which would have destroyed most of them - which I suppose is one of the reasons digging is recomended - to 'kill the pests'. This year I took ages hand weeding and rehoming various things to other areas. there were so many I had to get an container to keep them in to save time going to and thru. The weeds were mainly boring; plantains, grasses, chickweed, teasel etc and as the caterpillars were hiding under larger clumps it was difficult to know exactly what ate what. I think one of them was a Yellow Underwing. I pupa I unearthed and kept turned out to be a Shears.(apparently very common but I was thrilled as I had never seen one before)

Anyway to get to the point, it struck me that this temporary weed community is great habitat for many common moths and invertabrates. As the veg garden is quite large it is quite possible to leave parts fallow for a year (tends to happen anyway!). Only problem is bringing it back into cultivation without destroying them all.

Shears (I think!)

[ChrisC]

hi hilary,
not shears i'm afraid, has the look of a brocade but without my books to hand . . . . i'll try and have a look later.

Chris

[Nigel P]

Hi Hilary,

I think your moth is the Lychnis, see here:

http://www.hantsmoths.org.uk/species/2173.php

Nigel

[hilary]

Thanks for the IDs, I'll have another look at my moth book

[Pauline]

What a great thread Susie (loads of information here) and what amazing gardens you all must have. Have to admit I am not the greatest gardener (but I do try). I think I am hampered by the heavy clay and the 30-40' hedges which many birds nest in do keep out a fair bit of light.