Common Vetch

Bright florescent pink flowers of the common vetch. Flowering in May.

Primrose

Well known and loved in Woodhead by the folk who used to regularly visit the braes, down towards the River Ythan.

Daisy

Bellis perinnes 

Wild Flowers

on waste land at Woodhead

Sheeps Sorrel 

Bush Vetch

White Clover

Vipers Bugloss

Ramsons

Wild Garlic

Flowering end of May.

The chopped and cooked leaves have been used to flavour salad dishes and sauces.

Heather Moor

September  2005 - Ling heather in full glorious colour. The heathland, a purple carpet of heather flowers. 

Red Bartsia

A downy plant, 20-50 cms high. Flowers June-September. Found in disturbed ground and rough grassland.

Spagnum Moss

Spagnum moss is full colour in September. The Windyhills moss was called the Red Moss on the old maps. Reds, oranges and yellow.

Sundew

Drosera rotundifolia.The sundew is a plant that feeds on insects, using its leaves to catch them. The leaf is covered with a multitude of red hairs, each tipped with a sticky fluid. Glands at the tips of the hairs secrete juices that break down the soft parts of the insect and the plant obtains vital nutrients which are lacking in the acid moorland soil.

Purple Crane's-bill

Geranium Family

Wood Cranesbill

Thrift

Ox-eye Daisy

Flowers from June to August. The flower-head has an outer ring of white ray florets surrounding the central golden button of disc florets. The plant grows 20- 60 cms tall. 

Fox and Cubs Hawkweed

Lesser Twayblade

Listera cordata. Slender, inconspicuous, low, 4-10 cms. Dull, ruby orchid flowers. Single pair of leaves. Found in shady, mossy damp area of Windyhills.

Ivy-leaved Speedwell

Herb Robert

Mimulus

Heath Bedstraw

Heartease Pansy

Hairy Bittercress

Field Forget-me-not

Forget-me-not

Creeping Buttercup

Cow Parsley

Corn Sowthistle

Cornflower

Chickweed Wintergreen

Bush Vetch

Birdsfoot Trefoil

Red Campion

The male plant is pale pink and the female plant deep rosy -pink. Now widespread on verges locally.

Pink Purslane

Carpets of Pink Purslane can be seen in the Woodhead wood in May and June.

Bladder Campion

Spear thistle

Thyme leaved speedwell

Bugle

The blue flower is two lipped, but the upper lip is so short as to appear absent, leaving the blue stamens uncovered.

Ivy-leaved Speedwell

Dog Voilet

Primrose

The pale lemon flowers are borne singly on hairy stalks. The leaves are crinkly. Only one plant has been seen at Windyhills. It used to be prolific on the braes at Woodhead and was used to make crowns for the May King and Queen at Woodhead school.

Dandelion

Ground Ivy

Ground-ivy is found in woods and grassland throughout Britain, particularly on damp soils. The flower has two notched lips, the lower lip having darker markings. It has creeping roots and stems, the flowering branches are upright.

Stitchwort

Common Field Speedwell

A tiny plant with a beautiful, delicate blue flower. Found in grassy fields and on disturbed ground

Red Dead Nettle.

The short stems of the dead nettle are square. The flowers are two lipped, an upper and a lower lip. Started flowering in March

Lesser Celandine

One of the first flowers of Spring.

Related to the buttercup with shiny heart shaped leaves.

Hazel

25/01/05

The, lambies tails, male catkins shed their pollen on to the small red tassels of the female flowers which will ripen in autumn as hazelnuts.

Gorse or Whins

Flowering in January 2005

A member of the pea family. Very Prickly.

The young shoots used to be crushed and fed to cattle.

Snowdrop

First flowered on the 20th January 2005

Brambles

Large crop of brambles this year. Delicious for birds and visitors to Windyhills.

Common or Spear Thistle

One of three different thistles found at Windyhills. Very spiny stems and leaves. The purple flowers are surrounded by spine-tipped, sepal-like bracts.

Bell Heather

Thrives on acid, peaty soil. Darker purple flowers than the ling heather.

Tormentil

Potentilla erecta

Very small creeping, yellow flower with four petals. Used to be used for curing toothache.

Bird's-foot-trefoil

Grows abuntantly on pastures, roadsides and dry grasslands.

The seed pods resemble a bird's foot

Sundew

Tiny white flowers above a rosette of leaves. Insect eating plants of the bogs.

Needs very acid soil to survive.

Stitchwort

Stitchwort is a soft, straggly plant which grows in grassy, shade loving places. The weak stems need the grass for support.

Bog Asphodel

Flowers July to September

In autumn the old flowers turn a russet colour and the leaves change to a pale cream. The plants grow approx. 10 - 20 cms and are found near the bog areas.