Wiltshire Botanical Society
Welcome
Welcome to the Wiltshire Botanical Society. Our roots began in the 1980's when volunteers made a thorough and detailed survey of Wiltshire's flora, culminating in the publication of the Flora of Wiltshire in 1993. Instead of disbanding, the members joined together to form the Wiltshire Botanical Society. The society's aims are to:
- Foster botanical knowledge and to encourage interest in our local flora
- Increase members' knowledge and skills
- Publicise threats to habitats and populations of wild plants
- Undertake field meetings
- Contribute botanical records to local and national recording schemes
Plant of the Month
October
Red Goosefoot Oxybasis rubra
Commonly found as large, fast-growing annual plants growing on hyper-enriched substrates, e.g. farm manure heaps, but much smaller forms may grow on damp sediment around pools and reservoirs.
Given its (usually) unappealing habitat, Red Goosefoot is easily ignored by botanists, especially as its signature red pigments often don't develop until flowering time, in late summer going into autumn.
Red Goosefoot is closely related to several other goosefoots found in Wiltshire. Its strongly lobed leaves and red colour (when present) set it apart from all of those.
Join Us!
We pride ourselves on being are a very friendly society and we welcome new members, whatever their age, background or level of botanical knowledge. Annual membership costs £15 (single) and £20 for couples. To join, please email Martin Buckland.
Not sure if it's for you? Potential new members are very welcome to join us free of charge for a few field meetings before committing to membership.
Website Contributions
We always welcome news and contributions for our website. Please send them to the Webmaster, Sharon Pilkington.
