29/04/2024
Interesting ๐ค
Everyone loves bluebells! But how can you distinguish the UK native, Spanish and hybrid species?
Incredibly, almost half of the world's bluebells are found in the UK. They grow in large colonies that cover the ground of woodland edges from April-May.
Native bluebells (๐๐บ๐ข๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฏ-๐ด๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฑ๐ต๐ข) are threatened by habitat destruction, harvesting from the wild, and potentially competition from Spanish bluebells (๐๐บ๐ข๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฉ๐ช๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ฏ๐ช๐ค๐ข), a garden-escape introduced by the Victorians, which are able to hybridise with UK native bluebells (๐๐บ๐ข๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ด ๐น ๐ฎ๐ข๐ด๐ด๐ข๐ณ๐ต๐ช๐ข๐ฏ๐ข), so it can be difficult to identify true native populations.
The biggest tell is that native bluebells have droopy stems and a sweet scent, while Spanish bluebells are straight-stemmed and unscented.
๐ Bluebells are symbolically associated with gratitude and everlasting love ๐
[EDIT in response to FAQs:] Spanish and hybrid bluebells still provide a good nectar source, so they are beneficial to pollinators! ๐๐ It's fine if you already have them in your garden for people and wildlife to enjoy. However we want to encourage people to acknowledge the difference between the types of bluebells, and to be aware that if you want to plant new bulbs and your garden is close to natural areas where native bluebells are present, it is preferable to choose to plant native ones, due to the risk of escape or hybridisation with wild bluebells. And, if disposing of garden waste, always do this responsibly.๐ฑ
UK native bluebells are protected by law under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981).