Frosty Mountain Hop

My car required a good scrape this morning, such was the extent of the overnight frost. Officially my first frost of the autumn (and possibly the first the car has ever experienced - it spent all of its previous life in the Plymouth area).  

I headed up into The Cairngorms, parked at Coire na Ciste and then wandered uphill a little way. It was very chilly and I was glad to have my hat with me. 

Dwarf Cornel Cornus suecica with rime frost (or maybe hoar frost)

It was a beautifully crisp, clear morning. Just wow!!!

Feeling very much at peace with myself, all alone up a mountain, I considered slogging up the peak ahead of me in search of One-coned Clubmoss Lycopodium lagopus. But I was hungry, so decided better of it. I've seen the clubmoss here before, though it took quite a lot of searching to locate. One for next year, I reckon. I still need to acquaint myself with Issler's Clubmoss Diphasiastrum x issleri, the only clubmoss in Britain that I've yet to encounter. Doubtless I'll be back at some point to try for that. With a bit of luck I could get the One-coned Clubmoss on the same trek. 

Lots of Bearberry on the slopes. No berries though (guess all the bears got 'em)

I was pleasantly surprised to find quite a few Cowberry still in flower

Back at the car park I had a quick scout around for an ornamental conifer that was planted a few years back. I've looked for it before, but always in the wrong place. Today I found it, untickable but I wanted to see what it looked like anyway. And now I know

This is Dwarf Mountain Pine Pinus mugo

The BSBI maps show Pinus mugo to be widely scattered across much of Britain, but I suspect they are of planted trees rather than self-sown/naturalised examples. Still, it's always good to know what to look out for just in case! 

Of rather higher quality was this little stunner, found in quantity around the eastern edge of the upper car parking area at approximately NH98940622.  

Dwarf Birch Betula nana

I think Dwarf Birch Betula nana, along with Dwarf Willow Salix herbacea, is probably my favourite British tree. And not because I have a penchant for tiny trees! I think it's because I only ever encounter them up decent Scottish mountains, botanically speaking I mean. And I do love being up a botanically decent mountain. I need to get back up Ben Lawers and The Cairnwell next year, there are far too many great plants up those mountains that I've still to meet, and others to reacquaint myself with. 

Juniper Juniperus communis on the lower, heather-dominated slopes

Leaving Cairngorm I headed westwards almost into Aviemore, parking up by the bridge over The Spey just before hitting the main drag. I clambered down the embankment, wandered through the woods a short distance and popped out on the riverbank right next to my first new plant of the day. I love it when a plan comes together, as a cigar-chewing, glove-clad botanist never said.

Water Sedge Carex aquatilis

Ok, so it's not exactly looking its best at this time of year. Definitely a bit worn and ragged, I have to agree. This is Water Sedge Carex aquatilis, not at all uncommon throughout much of Scotland (though there's only one known site for it here on Skye). I suspect I've simply overlooked it up until now. It should look much better in the summer, so I shall make the effort to find some more when it's in better shape. Water Sedge is number 6836.

Whilst in Aviemore, I popped into Craigellachie NNR to say hello to the Heath Cudweed Omalotheca sylvatica colony I ticked a few months back. They're also definitely looking a bit ragged this late into the season, though I did manage to find one with a hint of green still showing. The rest were just a withered greyish colour and had mostly gone to seed.

Heath Cudweed Omalotheca sylvatica on the edge of a gravel track

My second target lifer of the day was another plant, this one a garden escape in Carrbridge. I duly headed northwards and soon arrived at the appointed location. As I stepped out of the car my eye was distracted by a bright green mound of leaves that I didn't recognise. Ooh...

Whoa, what's this beast of a plant then?

I thought I was still a short distance away from my target plant, hence I didn't actually put two and two together until I noticed the cauline leaves halfway up a stem. Ah, I recognised those alright!

This is it, this is my target plant!

This is Jacob's-ladder Polemonium caeruleum, a larger and far more lush plant than I was expecting! Almost all of the flowerheads were dead and dry, but I did find one with traces of life left in it. I expect these plants will look positively glorious in the height of the summer. Jacob's-ladder is number 6837.

With both plant targets safely in the bag, I began to work my way back towards Skye. A brief detour into Culloden Woods for Red-berried Elder Sambucus racemosa was instantly successful. There are many specimens of both Elder species here, but Red-berried has more elongated, sharper-looking leaflets and has two tiny stalked stipules at the base of the petioles. Elder Sambucus nigra is also common in these woods, but the leaves are larger and more rounded and it lacks the stalked stipules at the base of the petioles. 

Red-berried Elder showing leaf-shape and two tiny stalked stipules

Red-berried Elder is widespread East of a line between Inverness and Edinburgh, but there are only a handful of records West of the Great Glen and none at all from here on Skye. Culloden Woods is where I see it most often (i.e. every time I go there!) Sadly the birds had done away with all of the berries. Redwings descended like a plague into Scotland a few weeks ago and I suspect they, along with other thrushes, are the reason I couldn't see a single solitary berry today.