A BOTANICAL FIELD GUIDE TO IRELAND
From clover at your feet and bluebells in the woods to coastal gorse and old woodland oaks. Follow a familiar path and meet another side of Ireland's wildlife.
Seen in Ireland: native wildflowers, introduced trees and garden favourites. Every entry follows its appearance through spring, summer, autumn and winter.
BOTANICAL EDITION · 64 SPECIES · EN / ZH
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FIELD NOTES
Start with 64 plants and follow the island's seasons.
A starter selection, not a complete flora of Ireland.
Showing 64 plants
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Wildflowers
01
Hyacinthoides non-scripta
Seen in the wild
Nodding violet-blue bells carpet the woodland floor in late spring. Bluebells are one of the familiar sights of Ireland's spring woods.
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Wildflowers
02
Primula vulgaris
Seen in the wild
Pale yellow flowers with deeper golden centres brighten spring banks. Look for this early arrival beneath hedgerows and at woodland edges.
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Wildflowers
03
Digitalis purpurea
Seen in the wild
Tall spires of purple-pink bells rise above woodland edges. Foxgloves readily appear on cleared ground and banks with acidic soil.
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Wildflowers
04
Anemone nemorosa
Seen in the wild
White flowers spread across the woodland floor before the trees are fully in leaf. Their petal-like sepals are sometimes flushed pink beneath.
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Wildflowers
05
Trifolium pratense
Seen in the wild
Rounded pink to reddish-purple flower heads invite bumblebees into the grass. This familiar member of the pea family is also grown as a forage crop.
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Wildflowers
06
Trifolium repens
Seen in the wild
Small white flower heads dot lawns while creeping stems spread at your feet. White clover is an accessible starting point for exploring Irish grassland plants.
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Wildflowers
07
Bellis perennis
Seen in the wild
A yellow centre ringed with white rays makes the daisy one of the easiest flowers to meet on a park lawn. The rays may be tinged pink beneath.
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Wetland plants
08
Filipendula ulmaria
Seen in the wild
Clouds of tiny creamy-white flowers bring a sweet scent to damp summer meadows. Meadowsweet is a familiar tall plant beside Irish rivers and ditches.
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Wetland plants
09
Iris pseudacorus
Seen in the wild
Large bright yellow flowers rise above sword-like leaves at the water's edge. Yellow flag is a native wetland plant in Ireland.
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Shrubs
10
Calluna vulgaris
Seen in the wild
Tiny pink-purple flowers wash the hills with colour in late summer. This familiar heathland shrub is also known as ling.
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Shrubs
11
Ulex europaeus
Seen in the wild
Rich yellow pea-flowers brighten coasts and hillsides, often with a coconut-like scent on warm days. In Ireland it is also called furze or whin.
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Shrubs
12
Crataegus monogyna
Seen in the wild
White May blossom and red autumn fruits mark the changing seasons in Irish hedgerows. Hawthorn can also develop into a small tree.
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Trees
13
Ilex aquifolium
Seen in the wild
Glossy dark leaves remain through winter, and some trees carry bright red fruits. Holly is a widespread evergreen small tree in Ireland.
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Trees
14
Sorbus aucuparia
Seen in the wild
Creamy spring flower clusters give way to bunches of red autumn fruits. Also called mountain ash, rowan is not a true ash tree.
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Trees
15
Betula pendula
Seen in the wild
White bark, small triangular leaves and drooping twigs give silver birch a light silhouette. It is also planted in Irish parks.
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Trees
16
Quercus robur
Seen in the wild
A broad crown and rounded leaf lobes make this oak a familiar shape in old woods and parks. Also called English oak, it is native to Ireland too.
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Wildflowers
17
Taraxacum officinale
Seen in the wild
Golden heads and white seed clocks are familiar on Irish lawns and verges. This entry covers the common dandelion group rather than its difficult microspecies.
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Wildflowers
18
Ranunculus repens
Seen in the wild
Shiny yellow flowers brighten damp grass while runners help the plant spread through lawns and gardens.
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Ferns
19
Asplenium scolopendrium
Wild and cultivated
Instead of feathery divisions, this fern has whole glossy green blades, often tucked beside shady damp walls.
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Wildflowers
20
Anthriscus sylvestris
Seen in the wild
White umbels rise above finely divided foliage along roads and hedges in late spring.
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Wildflowers
21
Urtica dioica
Seen in the wild
Green flower strings and stinging leaves are familiar on rich roadside ground, providing a home for many insects.
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Wildflowers
22
Rumex obtusifolius
Seen in the wild
Large broad leaves sit beneath reddish-brown seed spikes that often rise above the surrounding grass.
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Wildflowers
23
Plantago lanceolata
Seen in the wild
Pale anthers ring small brown flower spikes like tiny lights above the grass.
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Ferns
24
Pteridium aquilinum
Seen in the wild
Large triangular fronds make green summer thickets, then a copper-brown blanket on autumn and winter slopes.
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Wildflowers
25
Achillea millefolium
Wild and cultivated
Feathery leaves support flat-topped white clusters. Wild plants and colourful garden cultivars can both be seen in Ireland.
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Wildflowers
26
Leucanthemum vulgare
Wild and cultivated
Much taller than a lawn daisy, its large white heads sway in meadows and roadside plantings.
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Wildflowers
27
Papaver rhoeas
Wild and cultivated
Paper-thin red petals stand out beside fields and in gardens. Seen in Ireland does not mean endemic or necessarily native.
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Wildflowers
28
Geranium robertianum
Seen in the wild
Small pink flowers hide at wall bases and in shade, with often reddish stems and long beak-like fruits.
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Wildflowers
29
Prunella vulgaris
Seen in the wild
Small purple spikes are easily missed in lawns until the individual two-lipped flowers come into view.
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Wildflowers
30
Veronica chamaedrys
Seen in the wild
Bright blue flowers with white centres look like tiny patches of sky in late-spring grass.
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Wildflowers
31
Glechoma hederacea
Seen in the wild
Scalloped kidney-shaped leaves creep over the ground beneath violet flowers. This is not the woody climbing ivy.
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Wildflowers
32
Ficaria verna
Seen in the wild
Glossy yellow stars and heart-shaped leaves bring early spring colour beneath damp hedges.
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Wildflowers
33
Galanthus nivalis
Wild and cultivated
Nodding white flowers often open in late winter. In Ireland snowdrops are planted bulbs and are also naturalised in some places.
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Wildflowers
34
Narcissus pseudonarcissus
Wild and cultivated
Pale yellow segments surround a deeper trumpet in this spring bulb. The species is recorded in Ireland, alongside many other planted daffodil cultivars.
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Wildflowers
35
Allium ursinum
Seen in the wild
White starry clusters spread above broad green leaves in damp spring woods. The name wild garlic is not permission to forage from a picture.
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Climbers
36
Hedera hibernica
Wild and cultivated
An evergreen climber on trunks and walls, flowering in autumn and ripening fruits into late winter and spring.
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Climbers
37
Lonicera periclymenum
Wild and cultivated
Creamy tubular flowers, ageing yellow, twine through hedges and often scent warm evenings.
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Shrubs
38
Rosa canina
Wild and cultivated
Arching stems carry pale pink summer flowers and red autumn hips, a familiar wild rose of Irish hedges.
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Shrubs
39
Prunus spinosa
Wild and cultivated
White blossom usually appears before the leaves, followed by bloom-covered blue-black sloes in autumn.
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Shrubs
40
Sambucus nigra
Wild and cultivated
Broad creamy flower clusters and dark purple fruits make elder conspicuous in hedgerows.
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Shrubs
41
Corylus avellana
Wild and cultivated
Yellow late-winter catkins, broad summer leaves and autumn nuts reward repeat visits to the same hazel clump.
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Trees
42
Alnus glutinosa
Wild and cultivated
A familiar tree of Irish riverbanks, often carrying catkins alongside the previous season's little woody fruiting structures.
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Trees
43
Fraxinus excelsior
Wild and cultivated
Black winter buds and bunches of winged keys help identify ash. Irish ash trees are affected by ash dieback disease.
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Trees
44
Fagus sylvatica
Wild and cultivated
Smooth grey bark and golden-copper autumn foliage make beech familiar in Irish parks and estates, including introduced self-sown stands.
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Trees
45
Acer pseudoplatanus
Wild and cultivated
Large hand-shaped leaves and paired spinning seeds occur in Irish streets, parks and hedges. This introduced tree is now widespread.
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Trees
46
Aesculus hippocastanum
Garden plantings
White flower candles in spring and shiny brown conkers in autumn mark this introduced tree, widely planted in Irish parks.
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Trees
47
Quercus petraea
Wild and cultivated
An important oak of Irish upland woods. Compared with pedunculate oak, the most useful differences lie in leaf and acorn stalks.
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Trees
48
Salix caprea
Wild and cultivated
Furry pussy-willow catkins open before the broad leaves, providing food for early insects.
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Trees
49
Pinus sylvestris
Wild and cultivated
Orange-red upper bark and blue-green needles remain visible year-round. Many Irish examples are planted trees.
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Trees
50
Taxus baccata
Wild and cultivated
Dark needles and red cup-like arils stand out through the year; columnar Irish yew is a cultivated form of this species.
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Wetland plants
51
Phragmites australis
Seen in the wild
Tall green summer reedbeds become pale brown winter stands, with feathery heads above the water's edge.
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Wetland plants
52
Typha latifolia
Seen in the wild
Brown sausage-shaped spikes stand above the water and later break into fluffy seed down.
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Wetland plants
53
Caltha palustris
Seen in the wild
Large golden flowers rise above fleshy kidney-shaped leaves by water in spring. This is not a garden marigold.
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Wetland plants
54
Lythrum salicaria
Wild and cultivated
Dense reddish-purple spikes rise along summer waterways; cultivated forms also appear in water gardens.
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Wildflowers
55
Chamaenerion angustifolium
Seen in the wild
Tall pink-purple spires colonise clearings, then release white seed fluff from splitting autumn pods.
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Wildflowers
56
Silene dioica
Seen in the wild
Pink-red flowers brighten shaded hedges and woodland edges for months, sometimes alongside spring bluebells.
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Wildflowers
57
Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora
Wild and cultivated
Orange-red arching sprays are familiar on western Irish roadsides, but this is an introduced garden hybrid of South African parentage.
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Shrubs
58
Fuchsia magellanica
Wild and cultivated
Pendant red-and-purple flowers are familiar in south-western Irish hedges, although the plant is not native to Ireland.
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Shrubs
59
Buddleja davidii
Wild and cultivated
Long purple flower cones appear in gardens and on rough urban ground and old walls in Ireland.
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Shrubs
60
Rhododendron ponticum
Wild and cultivated
Purple clusters and large evergreen leaves stand out in some Irish woods. This introduced invasive shrub can displace native vegetation.
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Shrubs
61
Prunus laurocerasus
Wild and cultivated
Glossy large leaves are common in hedges, with escapes from estates into woodland. This is not the culinary bay laurel.
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Shrubs
62
Hydrangea macrophylla
Garden plantings
Pink, blue and white mopheads or lacecaps brighten Irish gardens. Papery winter heads give the same shrub a very different appearance.
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Shrubs
63
Camellia japonica
Garden plantings
Red, pink or white flowers among glossy evergreen leaves bring late-winter and spring colour to some Irish gardens.
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Shrubs
64
Lavandula angustifolia
Garden plantings
Grey-green narrow leaves and purple spikes are familiar in sunny Irish borders; winter mostly reveals low foliage and woody stems.
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