#30DaysWild Day 3 – Moon Flowers

Tonight after another sunny welsh day in June, I took an evening stroll around the Howardian Nature Reserve in central Cardiff for a walk in the wild flowers. The reserve is a mixture of habitats; the shady woodland, reed beds and open meadow. It packs a lot of punch for a little reserve!

 “At dusk it shines … like a fallen moon”

Marcus Woodward

With most other flowers closing for the evening, the bright, sunny flower head of the Oxeye Daisy was unmissable amongst the lush green everywhere. The word daisy comes from the Anglo-Saxon words ‘daeyes’ and ‘eayes’, which translates to ‘day’s eye’. This is because the small common daisy closes up during the evening and opens during the day. Howver, the oxeye does not. This is where the name ‘moon flower’ comes from, as it is open during the evening.

Wild Flower Foray

Along the meadows I also spotted an Early Purple Orchid, a grassland orchid which flowers between April and June. As the name suggests it’s a vivid purple orchid which grows in spikes, and was traditionally used as an aphrodisiac!

Nestled along the pond banks were the bright yellow, cheery Yellow Irises, reaching high above the grass level. They really love damp, boggy areas such as reedbeds, ponds and wetlands and that’s exactly where I found them!

Keep It Wild

Remember to keep track of the rest of my 30 Days Wild adventures here:

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