Does anyone else have the feeling that everything is rushing into flower early? This is usually a late summer flower for me. Like… maybe there’s an intense summer or drought on the way and they want to get everything done before it’s too late? (Stunning photo by the way Jill)

I love that Poppies were once known as Thunderflowers, their blooms seen as harbingers of summer storms #heatwave

Sea and sky and a tiny boat. Llanfairfechan yesterday morning #heatwave

Semponium Vortex revelling in the heat and sun today (unlike me) #GardensHour

Our #100Plants2026 challenge is a huge success! >38K records submitted so far of 1,237 species by 989 recorders (most had never tried any #WildFlowerID before!) Support package includes FREE in-person events, eg Devon 28 May, Cheshire 30 May + 15 more events this summer: bsbi.org/take-part/ac...

Wow, some stunning photos of gorgeous wild & naturalised plants in tonight's #WildFlowerHour, putting on a #WildFlowerShow to rival #ChelseaFlowerShow2026! Please consider entering your pix into the Botanical Photographer of the Year competition: bsbi.org/take-part/ac... Hope to see you next Sunday!

I have a real soft spot for Black Bryony (Tamus communis). The glossy leaves just scream ‘I’M A YAM’ and look totally tropical in our hedgerows. As for the flowers… well… ‘understated’ would be kind… but they have a quiet elegance #wildflowerhour

Fodder Vetch (Vicia villosa) is really quite rare in Wales, except on the cycle path from Llanfairfechan to Bangor where it’s super abundant. It arose from sowing of “wildflowers” on verges of A55 many years ago (presumably it was meant to be Bush Vetch) #wildflowerhour

Who needs Chelsea when you can zoom past this amazing #wildflowershow on your bike? Oxeye Daisy and Red Valerian beside the cycle path from Conwy to Penmaenmawr #wildflowerhour

I feel the world needs more Pot Marigolds. Endless supplies of Pot Marigolds. These have all gloriously self-seeded throughout our garden and no two are ever the same. Pure joy 🌱

Finally got this mammoth European Fan Palm into the ground. Took most of the day to dig a *huge* hole, remove it from the pot and wrestle it into place. Thrilled with the result - it’s near my Butia odorata palm so the garden’s starting to look distinctly tropical 🌴🌱

It’s the #ChelseaFlowerShow2026 this week so why don’t we have a #WildFlowerShow for #WildflowerHour? Find wildflowers or combinations of several wildflower species looking absolutely spectacular & share your pics this Sunday 8-9pm! I wonder, if there will be a best-in-show?😉🏆

Picked up this *enormous* European Fan Palm (Chamaerops humilis) at the weekend. It’s 1.5 metres wide. Couldn’t say no - it was just £30!!! Been in the same pot for years so needs a bit of TLC, but will be fine once it’s planted out. Only challenge will be digging a hole big enough for it! 🌱

Does anyone actually ever stop to get down & admire Toad Rush (Juncus bufonius)? Thanks to the #tinyplants challenge I got my knees dirty, struggled to get back up again & then dropped my phone. But look what a little stunner it is! On the path at RSPB Conwy @rspbcymru.bsky.social #wildflowerhour

Another of the many #tinyplants at Aberffraw dunes - the super-cute Sand Cat's-tail (Phleum arenarium). Just look at those teeny-weeny anthers! A real personal favourite of mine #wildflowerhour

You want #tinyplants? How about the world’s smallest grass? Early Sand-grass (Mibora minima) at Aberffraw dunes. Admittedly this is now going to seed (it flowers late winter & early spring) but hopefully it’s allowed for #wildflowerhour

Dune Pansy (Viola tricolor subsp. curtisii) living up to its name, nearly buried in the sand at Aberffraw dunes, Ynys Môn (Anglesey). These #tinyplants were probably covered just a few days before flowering, with only the buds exposed above the sand #wildflowerhour

Britain’s favourite butterfly? I’ve voted for Small Copper, a tiny, vibrant jewel of a butterfly that makes my heart leap every time I see it britainsfavouritebutterfly.co.uk/butterfly/sm...

I’ve voted for Small Copper, which always lifts my heart when I see it, but why, @savebutterflies.bsky.social do you have a list of all English counties to say where you are when submitting your vote, but then just have ‘Wales’ and ‘Scotland’? Do you think we’re just regions of England? 😡

Was at Aberffraw dunes yesterday teaching a brilliant group of MSc students and Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) was one of the stars of the show (I’ll post other stars for the #wildflowerhour #tinyplants challenge on Sunday 😉)

Dwarf Milkwort: classed as Endangered on #GBRedList. Only 3 populations left in Kent & 16 in northern England. Good job our friends @speciesrecovery.bsky.social are helping it come back from the brink! Find out more about Dwarf Milkwort on its #PlantAtlas2020 page: plantatlas2020.org/atlas/2cd4p9...

The latest issue of #BSBINews, our fab membership magazine, is out now! Members: find it in your mailbox or (for digital members) via this password-protected page: bsbi.org/learn/period... Non-members: samplers & 1 free article from each issue available here for you to try: bsbi.org/learn/period...

Some of our #wildflowers are so incredibly minuscule they are very easy to miss! This week’s challenge is to get your specs 🤓 on & see if you find any #tinyplants in bloom. Share your finds for #WildflowerHour this Sunday 8-9pm! Happy teeny flower spotting! 🧐🌸🌿

Smaller than your thumb - and almost gone. Meet Dwarf Milkwort! #SpeciesOfTheWeek

London Pride (Saxifraga x urbium) on top of a wall against the railings in Oban. Always has such luscious leaves held in neat rosettes #urbanplants #wildflowerhour

Drumstick Primrose (Primula denticulata) growing in a car park in central Oban. Seems to be the first record for the vice-county #urbanplants #wildflowerhour

Fairy Foxglove (Erinus alpinus) brightening up a wall in Oban. Curiously uncommon in many areas, it’s particularly frequent in Argyll & Bute #wildflowerhour #urbanplants #wallplants

Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) in our meadow this week #carrotsandpeas #wildflowerhour

Portrait of a Welsh Poppy (Pabi Cymreig) to mark the momentous occasion of Plaid Cymru being granted power in the Senedd. The party’s logo is inspired by the flower (even though the petal count might be a little out!) #wildflowerhour

Fab morning in sunny Oban leading an urban plants walk around the town with Adventure Oban. Walls, pavements, garden escapes & woodland providing loads of stories. Lovely plants including Fairy Foxglove, London Pride, Welsh Poppy & Drumstick Primrose @bsbiscotland.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Great news for one of our dinkier species! Kent Wildlife Trust has recently recorded bumper numbers of Dwarf Milkwort (Polygala amarella) at an introduction site. Starting with just 21 introduced plants, the population has now topped 1,000! 🙏 @kentwildlife.bsky.social @rbgkew.bsky.social

Happy 100th Birthday David Attenborough! When I was just 10 years old I was transfixed watching you on ‘Life On Earth’. Thank you for igniting my curiosity in the natural world, for my passion in plants and my lifetime in botany & conservation. I owe you so much.

One of the best ways to promote our native plants is through photographs, so it's worth taking a bit longer every now and then to think about how you take them when you are out and about this year. Worth taking a look at the categories & having a look at past winners too

Find a member of the pea or carrot family, that’s the challenge this week from Wild Flower Hour! Don’t be tempted to eat them up though, as some members of the carrot family are extremely poisonous ☠️ Post your finds for #wildflowerhour this Sunday 8-9pm using #carrotsandpeas!

Another example of the impact #NoMowMay can have! Are you taking part this year? Find out more: bsbi.org/blog/2026/05... Initiated by @trevorthebotanist.bsky.social, run by our friends @plantlifeuk.bsky.social, the #NoMowMovement is benefitting our #wildflowers & the wildlife that depend on them!

We're calling on all plant-lovers to take images of wonderful wildflowers this summer & enter them in our Botanical Photographer of the Year competition! There are 5 categories and (new for 2026) we are introducing a separate award for young photographers. Find out more: bsbi.org/take-part/ac...

Despite encounters with hundreds of walls over the years, I’ve only found white Ivy-leaved Toadflax once before. Was therefore thrilled to spot it on one of my local bike routes yesterday. And what a little stunner it is! #UrbanPlants #WallPlants

#NoMowMay has started! Are you taking part? Find out how we are supporting our friends @plantlifeuk.bsky.social in their annual campaign to boost lawn biodiversity: bsbi.org/blog/2026/05... Leave your mower in the shed & let the wildflowers bloom: you'll be supporting pollinators & other wildlife!

Burnt orchids (Neotinea ustulata) were out in profusion in the Dordogne (France) last week. This is the early spring flowering form with especially dark burnt flower spikes. In French they’re known as Orchis Brûlé, and I now can’t see them without thinking of Crème Brûlée (burnt cream).

If anyone’s in Oban next Saturday morning 9th May, I’m leading an Urban Plants Walk around the town with Adventure Oban. There are 4 places available. It’s free, but booking is essential www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/urban-wild...

Wall-top Ivy-leaved Toadflax (Cymbalaria muralis) in Bangor, Gwynedd #wildflowerhour

Black Bryony (Tamus communis) is so exciting at this time of year. It’s erupting from the tops of hedgerows in an otherworldly, alien tangle of stems, falling over themselves and clothed in flower spikes. Not quite in flower yet, so only nearly #wildflowerhour

Caught - quite literally - between a rock and a hard place, Procumbent Yellow-sorrel (Oxalis corniculata) is one tough cookie #UrbanPlants #PavementPlants #WildflowerHour

Catch them in their brief moment of perfection and the flowers of Greater Celandine (Chelidonium majus) are… perfection #wildflowerhour

I think we have a new grassland type! Bird’s-eye Primrose grassland on Sulber, Ingleborough today. The number of Primula farinosa in flower was jaw-dropping. Beautiful. I never dreamt this grassland could be this good when I first visited in 1995. Then just the odd Primula flowering in flushes

It’s Rhododendron time in our garden. We’re very close to the famous Bodnant Gardens and the former head gardener, George Puddle, is thought to have designed and planted private gardens in the area, including ours. If you’ve been to Bodnant the influence is clear, albeit at a fraction of the scale 🌱

Happy #MayDay #CalanMai. I’m taking a moment to enjoy the Hawthorn (also known as May or Mayblossom), the powerfully symbolic & sacred tree used throughout history to repel evil. Perhaps needed today more than ever.

On the eve of #NoMowMay, great to see @privateeyenews.bsky.social showing how to do it! @plantlifeuk.bsky.social

Wowzers! First blooms on a new cactus - Rebutia (Aylostera) hoffmannii - and they’re like firecrackers. This is a wonderful species from Argentina and I love the small, neat plants with their ridiculously oversized flowers. Loads of buds coming too 🌱

Cannot beat the sheer abundance of Greater Stitchwort at this time of year. So simple and crisp and clean, just pure white and green #wildflowerhour #hedgerowchallenge