Scottish Bluebells Are Under Threat – But Spanish Not Really to Blame
Scottish Bluebells Are Under Threat –
But Spanish Not Really to Blame
True Scottish bluebells are on the verge of extinction and with that demise will go the blue woodland carpets of flowers that we see in late spring with it the seas of blue which carpet British woodlands in spring. This led to a serious investigation into the dangers facing the woodland by scientists at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh who began work in 2004 to try to assess the threat. They are looking at the ecology of the bluebell and its DNA. Scientists were at first convinced that the decline in native bluebells was caused by an aggressive foreign invader, the so called Spanish bluebell, Hyacinthoides hispanica, but it seems they were wrong the bluebell invader seems to be a nasty hybrid.
Garden centres throughout the land were selling what were supposedly native plants, but which were in fact the Spanish variant which then escaped into the wild and crossed with the British bluebell and made a Frankenstein hybrid. The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s work is going to be vital if we are to retain the delights of the bluebell wood. Growing up as a lad we had a bluebell wood close to us and it was one of the nicest things to see in the springtime.
Nature Tamed
We wish the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh well in their search to find a way to stop this nasty invader and if you want cast your mind to less worrying trends then we have just now got nature tamed with those lovely people from Royal Crown Derby who have captured the very essence of British wildlife with their fine porcelain a must for every nook and cranny. Alongside these sit a koala and a leopard, blimey! And I had to look up the hawfinch, which is a very rare visitor it seems, what they call passerine. And with these reductions you shouldn’t passerine them up. (Sorry)
