Alderney is a small island with many beautiful flowers, especially in spring and summer. This blog introduces you to some botanical beauties you may encounter on a walk in Alderney during late spring and summer (June–August)
Botanical beauties on Alderney
© Joshua Copping
A brief overview of beautiful wildflowers on Alderney in summer
Ash mining bee on Thrift / Thanh Doan
Thrift (Armeria maritima)
Also known as Sea Pink, Thrift is common all around Alderney’s coasts and cliffs and can be found in flower in sheltered places most months of the year. Its pom-poms of flowers can vary between deep pink to almost white and are very attractive to many pollinators.
Yellow Bartsia / Lindsay Pyne
Yellow Bartsia (Parentucellia viscosa) is an erect hairy plant that flowers between June and September. It bears bright yellow flowers which are arranged in spikes.
Alderney Sea-lavender / Lindsay Pyne
Alderney Sea-lavender (Limonium normannicum)
Alderney Sea Lavender is one of the island’s special plants as in the whole of the British Isles it only grows here and in Jersey. On Alderney, it grows on the rocky splash zone at Houmet Herbe, and is in flower from late May to August. You may also find the more common Rock Sea-lavender on the shore nearby.
Pyramidal Orchid / Thanh Doan
Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis)
This is Alderney’s commonest orchid. It has a pyramid-shaped head of bright pink flowers, each with a long spur, and narrow unspotted leaves. It can be found in calcareous grassland and along road verges from June and Braye and Longis Commons are particularly good places to see it.
Viper's Bugloss / Poppy Emmens
Viper’s Bugloss (Echium vulgare)
A roughly hairy native biennial, it produces spikes of brilliant blue trumpet-shaped flowers with pinkish-purple protruding stamens. It prefers dry, bare or sparsely grassy places, and one of the best places to find it here is around Fort Albert. The plant is loved by insects of all kinds, especially bees, hoverflies and butterflies.
Bee Orchid / Lou Collings
This orchid resembles a female bee—a clever trick to attract bees for pollination. However, the right species of bee does not occur in the UK, so bee orchids are self-pollinated. They can be found in chalky grasslands such as Braye Common and the area near the Harbour.
Dodder in flower / Thanh Doan
Dodder (Cuscuta epithymum)
A small parasitic plant containing no chlorophyll, Dodder appears as a mass of tiny red strings all over its host plant, usually Thyme, Gorse or Bird’s-foot Trefoil. Little pale pink flowers, resembling miniature pom-poms, appear in the summer. Dodder is considered vulnerable in the UK but is locally common on Alderney, particularly within the Longis Reserve.
Fennel / Thanh Doan
Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
Fennel is a naturalised species, usually found here by the sea and around the coast in places such as Platte Saline and Braye Common. The flat umbels of yellow flowers appear in July and the fine dark green feathery leaves with their strong aniseed smell (and taste) are an excellent addition to local fish dishes.