June really is the loveliest month for meadow flowers.
Hopefully many of you will have left an area of churchyard grass to grow long, either for No Mow May or else in preparation for some nature spotting as part of Churches Count on Nature.
One of the most showy flowers in a meadow is the Oxeye Daisy, also called Moon Daisy and Moonpenny; the large white petals drawing pollinators in to the bright yellow centre. Look out for a variety of vetches, members of the pea family. You may find Tufted Vetch – look out for 6-spot burnet moths on this one. Bush Vetch and Common Vetch are likely too and a great many churchyards contain Bird’s-foot-trefoil also known as Eggs and Bacon because of the mix of yellow and orange on the flowers. Richard Mabey, in his fantastic book Flora Britannica lists many names for Bird’s-foot-trefoil including Hen and Chickens, Tom Thumb, Granny’s Toenails, Cuckoo’s Stocking and Dutchman’s Clogs.
Lady’s Bedstraw is often found in churchyards. It smells sweet when dried and would be added to hay stuffed in mattresses, particularly when preparing a bed for childbirth. Look out for the froth of yellow flowers (other bedstraws have white flowers) and the scent of honey. The Lady in the name is the Virgin Mary.
Perhaps your churchyard contains orchids, the most common one flowering in June is Common Spotted Orchid. The presence of orchids indicates an old grassland which has matured over time and developed a range of species within the soil. All orchids depend on a fungal partner, feeding the plant underground via the threadlike mycorrhizae.
Your churchyard meadow areas act as pitstops or cafes for insects and can buzz with life. Try and spend a little time enjoying them and seeing which pollinators are using them.
