April is nearly over although it seemed a quite long month to me. It has been getting greener every day and the chestnut trees are already in flower despite being very cold for the last few days. We have showers, thunderstorms and hailstones accompanied by very chilly winds almost daily. I have put my gloves back on when outside.
The flowers though seem to keep going and this month bluebells started to bloom all over the country. Last year it has been voted the Nation’s Favourite Wildflower in England according to PlantLife and this year Botanical Society of British Isles named it a wildflower of the month April.
I have spotted my first bluebell or to be precise, a Spanish bluebell at the end of February. There are generally two types of bluebells, a native English one Hyacinthoides non-scripta and Spanish bluebell Hyacinthoides hispanica. They look quite similar but distinctive at the same time. Here is a picture from PlantLife explaining all the differences.
The English bluebells carpeting the woodland floor are indicating the ancient woods dating back to 1600. The Spanish bluebell was introduced in the UK where is has became a quite invasive. Both types of bluebells hybridise quite easily producing Hyacinthoides × massartiana. Personally I like all of them and can’t get enough of those pretty flowers. Seeing them in the woods, parks and gardens means spring is in full swing, despite the hailstones.
It’s such a shame the Spanish bluebells hybridise as they are really lovely plants in their own right.
I like them too.
They are beautiful! And they are different than the flower we call bluebell over here 🙂
Oh yes, yours look completely different.
I don’t like to abuse a flower but the Spanish bluebells are thugs.
I like them but I’m not a gardener.
They take over from the native ones very quickly.
I am afraid I agree with Mr Tootlepedal! They are almost impossible to get rid of if you don’t want them in your garden. They are very pretty but I prefer the more delicate sweetly scented ‘non scripta’. You have taken some lovely photos of them.
Thank you. I hear lots of gardeners complain about Spanish bluebells.