A tall orchid of woodland and scrub, the broad-leaved helleborine has greenish, purple-tinged flowers that look a little 'drooping'. Strongly veined, oval leaves spiral around its stem…

Look for the pretty, star-shaped, white flowers of Lesser stitchwort in woodlands and meadows, and along hedgerows and roadside verges in spring. Its flowers are smaller than those of Greater…

The laughing 'yaffle' call of the green woodpecker can be heard in our woodlands, parks and gardens. Look out for it hopping about your lawn, searching for ants to eat.

The Norway spruce was introduced into the UK from Scandinavia in the 16th century. It is familiar to us all as the 'original' Christmas tree and displays hanging, reddish-brown, oblong…

The Sitka spruce was introduced into the UK from North America in the 19th century. It has been widely planted as a forestry tree; look for classic needle-like leaves and pale brown, domed cones…

Wood melick is a slender, drooping grass that grows in dense patches in ancient woodlands and along shady banks. It has nodding flower heads, with brown, egg-shaped spikelets that contain the…

As its name suggests, Silverweed has silvery leaves with toothed edges. It can be found in grassy places, along roadsides and on waste ground - look for yellow, saucer-shaped flowers and red…

The pyramidal orchid lives up to its name - look for a bright pinky-purple, densely packed pyramid of flowers atop a green stem. It likes chalk grassland, sand dunes, roadside verges and quarries…

A late-blooming flower, Meadow saffron looks like a crocus, displaying similar pink flowers once its leaves have died back. It is a highly poisonous plant of meadows and woodland rides and…

Spring squill is a small, star-shaped purple-blue flower found on coastal grasslands.

A creeping and climbing plant of cultivated ground, Field Bindweed can become a pest in places as it stops other plants from growing. It has creamy, sometimes striped, large flowers, and arrow-…

Our most familiar wild violet, the Common dog-violet can be spotted in a range of habitats from woodland to grassland, hedgerows to pastures. Its pansy-like, purple flowers appear from April to…