Skip to main content

Fly Agaric

Amanita muscaria

How to identify Fly Agaric

CapRed or sometimes orange in colour with white spots, which are remnants of the protective veil. They can sometimes be washed away by the rain.
Cap diameter10cm-20 cm when mature
GillsBegin white but become a pale yellow over time. The gills are free from the stem
StemWhite stems around 10cm-25cm long
SporesWhite

 

 

Where to find them?

Fly Agaric can be found in woodlands and along woodland edges. They often reoccur in the same place over multiple years and are widespread throughout Britain and Ireland.

Did you know?

The name Fly Agaric refers to the fungus having been used as an insecticide.

Don’t mistake it with?

If the white spots wash off the Fly agaric cap, it can be mistaken for red Russula species such as the Beechwood sickener Russula nobilis. There are also other Amanita species which look similar to the Fly Agaric but lack the distinctive red cap (e.g. The Blusher, Amanita rubescens)

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 

Chicken of the woods

Laetiporus sulphureus

Chicken of the Woods

How to identify:

BracketsThe fungus is comprised of several  overlapping brackets 
GillsThis bracket fungus does not have gills  
StemIt has no stem
FleshThick yellow-orange flesh which darkens with age. The underside of the brackets have yellow pores, which is the spore-forming surface of the fungus  
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

This fungus is a common find in woodlands across the UK. They are found mainly on deciduous trees, for example oak, sweet chestnut and beech. Often they are quite high up on the tree trunk, so its worth casting your eyes upwards!  

Did you know?

The flesh of this bracket fungus has a texture similar to cooked chicken, hence the common name!  

Don’t mistake it with…

The Giant polypore (Meripilus gigantus) can form similar bracket structures. However, the underside of Giant polypore turns black when damaged, which cannot be seen in Chicken of the Woods. 

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 

How to identify:

Annual/Perennial/BiennialPerennial
Height90cm
Flower typeRounded flower spikes
LeavesHairy, oval and toothed
StemsSingle or double stemmed, hairy

 

A collection of Water Mint growing by a woodland stream, pretty purple flowers stand out against the green leaves

How to Spot

Water Mint can grow up to 90cm tall. It has pretty, pale purple flower heads and hairy leaves and stems. The leaves can be between 2cm and 6cm and grow in whorls around the stem.

Peppermint shares a resemblance, but has darker flowers, leaves and often has a purple stem.

Where to Spot

This pretty, aromatic plant is common all over the UK. You can find it growing in wet meadows, fens and marshes, streams, ponds, riversides and damp woodlands.

Things you might not know

It is said that Water Mints pleasant scent was used during the medieval era, to make their dining halls smell fresh.

Reportedly the plants were laid on the floor so that guests would step on them upon entering, and release the sweet smell of mint.

Other Species

Bluebell
Bluebell close-up.

Bluebell

Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Bugle
A close up of a blue bugle plant.

Bugle

Ajuga reptans

Cowslip
Cowslip Close Up.

Cowslip

Primula Veris

Bracken

Pteridium aquilinum

Close up look at Bracken

How to spot

Bracken is the most common fern in the UK. A long-lived extensively spreading plant, it can grow up to 2.5m.

It has long fronds with pinnate leaves, which means they have one long stem in the centre with small leaves coming off.

This species, unlike other fern species, dies back in the winter, with it’s leaves turning brown. In the spring Bracken fronds appear tightly curled and slowly unravel.

Where to spot

Bracken is a common site all around the UK – but it’s not just in the British Isles that it can be seen, this species is found on every continent except Antarctica.

Here in the British Isles, it can be found in moorlands, woodlands, heathlands, and even pastures and abandoned agricultural land.

 

The tops of Bracken plants against a dark background

Things you might not know

Bracken has fascinating folklore and can be linked to a number of different cultures and religions.

One of the most interesting mythologies around this species is that it was said to hold the power to turn people invisible! Bracken reproduces using tiny spores rather than seeds. The story goes that holding the spores of bracken could make you as invisible as they were.

Other Species

Bluebell
Bluebell close-up.

Bluebell

Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Bugle
A close up of a blue bugle plant.

Bugle

Ajuga reptans

Cowslip
Cowslip Close Up.

Cowslip

Primula Veris

Devil’s-bit Scabious

Succisa pratensis

The round pretty blue flowers of Devil's-bit Scabious

How to spot

Devil’s-bit Scabious is part of the Globulariaceae family which includes similar looking relatives such as Small Scabious Scabiosa columbaria and Field Scabious Knautia arvensis.

They all have similar looking rounded composite flower heads, made up of many tiny flowers. They are usually blue in colour, though can sometimes be purple. You can tell Devil’s-bit from it’s relatives as it has long oval leaves.

Devil’s-bit Scabious is a perennial plant that grows up to 100cm.

Where to spot

This plant prefers damp environments and can be found in marshes, wet heathlands, fens and woodlands.

It is a common plant that is found all over the UK.

 

Common Carder Bee on Devil's-bit Scabious - Joan's Hill

Things you might not know

  1. Devil’s-bit Scabious is a favourite among pollinators. It is rich in both pollen and nectar which attracts a variety of insects from bees to butterflies and moths to hoverflies.
  2. The first part of the name ‘Devil’s-bit’ comes from a folklore tale that suggests the devil once bit the root of the plant which caused it’s distinctive flat edge.
  3. The second part of the name, ‘Scabious’, comes from the Latin word ‘scabere’, which means ‘scratch’. Indeed the plant has been used in the past to treat itchy skin conditions from scabies to eczema and even the sores brought on by the bubonic plague.

 

Other Species

Bluebell
Bluebell close-up.

Bluebell

Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Bugle
A close up of a blue bugle plant.

Bugle

Ajuga reptans

Cowslip
Cowslip Close Up.

Cowslip

Primula Veris

Sea Mayweed

Tripleurospermum maritimum

Months

Season

Colour

Close up of a Sea Mayweed clinging to a coastal wall
Sea Mayweed pokes out of the rocks on a beach in Cornwall

How to spot

Sea Mayweed is very similar to it’s relative the Scentless Mayweed. One way to spot the difference is that the Sea Mayweed has shorter and thicker leaves that are quite succulent.

It belongs to the Daisy family and, like it’s relative is a composite, which means the ‘flower’ head that you see is actually made up of many different tiny flowers. Just like the Daisy, these consist of white ray florets and then yellow disc florets in the centre.

Sea Mayweed is a perennial plant that grows up to 60cm high with 4cm flowering heads.

Where to spot

As the name suggests, this is a coastal plant that loves to be close to the sea. You can find it all around the UK, on cliffs, sea walls and beaches as well as waste ground that is near the ocean.

 

A close up of a Sea Mayweed flower head with white petals and a large yellow centre, in the background you can see a mass of succulent style leaves

Things you might not know

Sea Mayweed belongs to the Asteraceae family, which is the largest plant family in the world and contains species ranging from the Common Daisy Bellis perennis to the Lettuce and from Sunflowers Helianthus, to Artichokes!

Other Species

Bluebell
Bluebell close-up.

Bluebell

Hyacinthoides non-scripta

Bugle
A close up of a blue bugle plant.

Bugle

Ajuga reptans

Cowslip
Cowslip Close Up.

Cowslip

Primula Veris

Sweet Vernal Grass

Anthoxanthum oderatum

A close up photograph of Sweet Vernal Grass
Sweet Vernal Grass in the sunshine

How to spot

Thin, wiry grass with short leaves and a spike of flowers at the top of the stem. Where the leaf meets the stem, there is a fringe of hairs which look like eyelashes.

Where to spot

On old meadows and grasslands that are often rich in wild flowers. Here, it’s one of the first meadow grasses to come into flower in the spring.

Don’t mistake it with

Red Fescue – another grass with a narrow stem and pointy flower spikes, but which is bigger and lacks the scent.

Sweet Vernal grass

Things you might not know

It gives out a scent that is THE distinctive smell of a hay meadow – somewhere between vanilla and almond. Some people like to chew the grass to get the taste of the scent.

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 

Rough Meadow Grass

Poa trivialis

Rough Meadow Grass in the field
Rough Meadow Grass at Allimore Green

How to spot it

At first glance, this looks like a typical grass. Quite tall, with its flat flowers hanging from the ends of short stalks, arranged along the stem like a Christmas tree. But rub your fingers along the fresh stem and you’ll notice it is slightly rough. Pull the leaf away from the stem a little bit and you’ll see a membrane-like triangle – known as a ligule, this is distinctly long and pointy on Rough Meadow Grass.

Where to spot it

Rough Meadow Grass not only grows in all kinds of grassland, but also in marshes, ditches, wastelands and woodland glades. It’s also found on lawns but struggles to survive if mown regularly.

Don’t mistake it with

Smooth Meadow Grass looks very similar but lacks the roughness of the stem, and its ligule, that membrane at the junction of the stem and leaf, is not pointy in shape.

Things you might not know

Just one plant of Rough Meadow Grass can produce up to 29,000 seeds, providing food for worms and ground beetles.

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 

Perennial Rye Grass

Lolium perenne

Perennial Rye grass pictured at Cannon Hill Park

How To Spot

Its glossy dark green leaves shimmer as they waft in a breeze. Closer up, their spikey flowers cling close to the stem, barely overlapping. The stem turns a lovely burgundy red colour near the base of the stem.

For those with a keen eye, the leaves clasp around the stem with what look like a pair of hooked claws, known as an auricle.

Where to spot

Widespread across the UK, it’s particularly abundant in parklands, sports fields and freshly laid lawns. It is also the most commercially sown grass on farmland, cut a few times a year to provide winter food for cattle and sheep.

Don’t mistake it with

Couch Grass has spikey flowers that also cling close to the stem, but unlike Rye Grass, these overlap. Its leaves are grey-green and rather rough rather than the smooth feeling, dark and glossy leaves of Rye Grass.

Things you might not know

As Rye Grass grows fast and is eagerly eaten by livestock, it was the first grass in Britain to be sown commercially on farmland, probably more than 400 years ago. Modern varieties are bred to be able to tolerate trampling, mowing and heavy grazing.

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 

Yorkshire Fog

Holcus lanatus

Close up of Yorkshire-fog
Dense Yorkshire Fog in a meadow

How To Spot

This is easy! It has a soft, tall, hairy stems – just run your fingers along it. No other grass feels like this. The bottom of its stem looks like pink stripey pyjamas – no other grass looks like this. There are pink flushes too in its long flower head which look beautiful when swaying in the wind.

Where to spot

The most widespread of all grasses in the UK, it’s found on all kinds of grasslands, from meadows to wastelands.  On lawns, it flowers a little bit later than other grasses during No Mow May.

Don’t mistake it with

Creeping soft-grass – its nearest relative is only hairy on its nodes, the lumpy bits along the stem that look like knees.

Yorkshire Fog pictured in the sunshine

Things you might not know

It can be a dominating grass as it produces huge amounts of seed which can germinate almost immediately, and buried seed remains viable for many years.

Other Species

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species) 
Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

Honey Fungus (Armillaria species)