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I've been away at the BSBI Welsh AGM and then busy with leading a walk in a reserve followed by some Geology around Tenby so it was nice to get back to some botanical recording on Thursday accompanied by members of the Brecknock Botanical recording Group, my co-recorder, Mike Porter, Steph Coates and Paul Green.

We were exploring Cae Bryntywarch Nature Reserve (Brecknock Wildlife Trust) in the hope we might refind Small White Orchid in the second site in the county where it has been seen in the last few decades. There was no luck with this and sadly several choice species previously seen at the reserve were no longer present, including Dyer's Greenweed and Butterfly Orchid. However, Carex montana was still well-established, if long-past flowering:

Soft-leaved Sedge, Hesgen feddal or Carex montana

There was plenty of Wood-Bitter-vetch:

Wood Bitter-vetch, Ffacbysen chwerw or Vicia orobus

some still flowering but much more with seed pods. (The above not taken this year...) Great Burnet was abundant as was Betony and many other good things which made the conundrum of the disappearing species even more baffling.

By the time we had explored the lanes around the list stretched to nearly 200 different species (slightly fewer if you discount the subspecies my more-expert colleagues were pointing out) and we scored a full set on my recording card of Dryopteris ferns (ie all the ones I expect to find at all often in Brecknock - five in all).

Tormentil, Potentilla erecta subsp. strictissima (a rare subspecies of a common plant)

Plus this cooperative and photogenic lizard.

And I took this in the car park in Brecon from which we shared cars to the reserve...

A gallery from the Welsh BSBI AGM and Tenby

Sea Spleenwort, Duegredynen arfor or Asplenium marinum high above the beach at Saundersfoot

Greater Knapweed, Y bengaled fawr or Centaurea scabiosa at Skrinkle Haven

Lesser Centaury, Y ganrhi goch fach or Centaurium pulchellum at Newport Wetlands Centre

Narrow-leaved Bird's-foot-trefoil, Lotus tenuis probably introduced in a seed mixture at Newport Wetlands Centre

Lily-of-the-valley, Lili’r dyffrynnoedd or Convallaria majalis at Black Cliff Wood

Geology at Saundersfoot...