Flora of Scotland
Encyclopedia
Vascular plant
Vascular plants are those plants that have lignified tissues for conducting water, minerals, and photosynthetic products through the plant. Vascular plants include the clubmosses, Equisetum, ferns, gymnosperms and angiosperms...
plants, more than 1,500 lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
s and nearly 1,000 bryophyte
Bryophyte
Bryophyte is a traditional name used to refer to all embryophytes that do not have true vascular tissue and are therefore called 'non-vascular plants'. Some bryophytes do have specialized tissues for the transport of water; however since these do not contain lignin, they are not considered to be...
s. The total number of vascular species is low by world standard but lichens and bryophytes are abundant and the latter form a population of global importance. Various populations of rare fern
Fern
A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...
exist, although the impact of 19th century collectors threatened the existence of several species. The flora is generally typical of the north west Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an part of the Palearctic
Palearctic
The Palearctic or Palaearctic is one of the eight ecozones dividing the Earth's surface.Physically, the Palearctic is the largest ecozone...
ecozone
Ecozone
An ecozone is the broadest biogeographic division of the Earth's land surface, based on distributional patterns of terrestrial organisms.Ecozones delineate large areas of the Earth's surface within which organisms have been evolving in relative isolation over long periods of time, separated from...
and prominent features of the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
flora include boreal
Boreal ecosystem
The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....
Caledonian
Caledonian Forest
The Caledonian Forest is the name of a type of woodland that once covered vast areas of Scotland. Today, however, only 1% of the original forest survives, covering in 84 locations. The forests are home to a wide variety of wildlife, much of which is not found elsewhere in the British...
forest (much reduced from its natural extent), heather moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
and coastal machair. In addition to the native varieties of vascular plants there are numerous non-native introductions, now believed to make up some 43% of the species in the country.
There are a variety of important trees species and specimens; a Grand Fir in Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
is the tallest tree in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the Fortingall Yew
Fortingall Yew
The Fortingall Yew is an ancient yew in the churchyard of the village of Fortingall in Perthshire, Scotland. Various estimates have put its age at between 2,000 and 5,000 years; recent research into yew tree ages suggests that it is likely to be nearer the lower limit of 2,000 years...
may be the oldest tree in Europe. The Shetland Mouse-ear
Shetland Mouse-ear
Cerastium nigrescens, commonly known as the Shetland Mouse-ear, Shetland Mouse-eared Chickweed or Edmondston's Chickweed, is an endemic plant found in Shetland, Scotland....
and Scottish Primrose
Primula scotica
Primula scotica, commonly known as Scottish primrose, is a species of primrose that is endemic to the north coast of Scotland, including Caithness and Orkney. It is closely related to the Arctic species Primula stricta and Primula scandinavica.Primula scotica is easily distinguished from other...
are endemic flowering plants and there are a variety of endemic mosses and lichens. Conservation of the natural environment is well developed and various organisations play an important role in the stewardship of the country's flora. Numerous references to the country's flora appear in folklore, song and poetry.
Habitats
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
enjoys a diversity of temperate ecologies, incorporating both deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
and coniferous woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
s, and moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
, montane
Montane
In biogeography, montane is the highland area located below the subalpine zone. Montane regions generally have cooler temperatures and often have higher rainfall than the adjacent lowland regions, and are frequently home to distinct communities of plants and animals.The term "montane" means "of the...
, estuarine
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
, freshwater
Freshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
, ocean
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
ic, and tundra
Tundra
In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine...
landscape
Landscape
Landscape comprises the visible features of an area of land, including the physical elements of landforms such as mountains, hills, water bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds and the sea, living elements of land cover including indigenous vegetation, human elements including different forms of...
s. Approximately 14% of Scotland is wooded, much of it forestry plantations, but prior to human clearing there would have been much larger areas of boreal
Boreal ecosystem
The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....
Caledonian
Caledonian Forest
The Caledonian Forest is the name of a type of woodland that once covered vast areas of Scotland. Today, however, only 1% of the original forest survives, covering in 84 locations. The forests are home to a wide variety of wildlife, much of which is not found elsewhere in the British...
and broad-leaved forest. Although much reduced, significant remnants of the native Scots Pine
Scots Pine
Pinus sylvestris, commonly known as the Scots Pine, is a species of pine native to Europe and Asia, ranging from Scotland, Ireland and Portugal in the west, east to eastern Siberia, south to the Caucasus Mountains, and as far north as well inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia...
woodlands, can be found in places. 17% of Scotland is covered by heather
Calluna
Calluna vulgaris is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing perennial shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found widely in Europe and Asia Minor on acidic soils in open sunny situations and in moderate shade...
moorland and peatland. Caithness
Caithness
Caithness is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic local government area of Scotland. The name was used also for the earldom of Caithness and the Caithness constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . Boundaries are not identical in all contexts, but the Caithness area is...
and Sutherland
Sutherland
Sutherland is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic administrative county of Scotland. It is now within the Highland local government area. In Gaelic the area is referred to according to its traditional areas: Dùthaich 'IcAoidh , Asainte , and Cataibh...
have one of the largest and most intact areas of blanket bog
Blanket bog
Blanket bog or blanket mire is an area of peatland, forming where there is a climate of high rainfall and a low level of evapotranspiration, allowing peat to develop not only in wet hollows but over large expanses of undulating ground. The blanketing of the ground with a variable depth of peat...
in the world, supporting a distinctive wildlife community. 75% of Scotland's land is classed as agricultural (including some moorland) with urban areas accounting for around 3% of the total. The number of islands with terrestrial vegetation is nearly 800, about 600 of them lying off the west coast. Scotland has more than 90% of the volume and 70% of the total surface area of fresh water
Fresh Water
Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. There are more than 30,000 fresh water loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
s and 6,600 river systems.
Below the tree line there are several zones of climax forest
Climax community
In ecology, a climax community, or climatic climax community, is a biological community of plants and animals which, through the process of ecological succession — the development of vegetation in an area over time — has reached a steady state. This equilibrium occurs because the climax community...
. Birch dominates to the west and north, Scots Pine
Scots Pine
Pinus sylvestris, commonly known as the Scots Pine, is a species of pine native to Europe and Asia, ranging from Scotland, Ireland and Portugal in the west, east to eastern Siberia, south to the Caucasus Mountains, and as far north as well inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia...
with Birch and oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
in the eastern Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
and oak (both Quercus robur and Q. petrea) with Birch in the Central Lowlands
Central Lowlands
The Central Lowlands or Midland Valley is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and the Southern Uplands Fault to the south...
and Borders
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...
. Much of the Scottish coastline consists of machair, a fertile dune pasture land formed as sea levels subsided after the last ice age. Machairs have received considerable ecological and conservational
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
attention, chiefly because of their unique ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
s.
Flowering plants and shrubs
The total number of vascular species is low by world standards, partly due to the effects of PleistocenePleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
glaciations (which eliminated all or nearly all species) and the subsequent creation of the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
(which created a barrier to re-colonisation). Nonetheless, there are a variety of important species and assemblages. Heather moor containing Ling
Calluna
Calluna vulgaris is the sole species in the genus Calluna in the family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing perennial shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found widely in Europe and Asia Minor on acidic soils in open sunny situations and in moderate shade...
, Bell Heather
Erica cinerea
Erica cinerea is a species of heather, native to western and central Europe. It is a low shrub growing to tall, with fine needle-like leaves long arranged in whorls of three...
, Cross-leaved Heath
Erica tetralix
Erica tetralix is a species of heather found in Atlantic areas of Europe, from southern Portugal to central Norway, as well as a number of boggy regions further from the coast in Central Europe. In bogs, wet heaths and damp coniferous woodland, Erica tetralix can become a dominant part of the flora...
, Bog Myrtle
Myrica gale
Myrica gale is a species of flowering plant in the genus Myrica, native to northern and western Europe and parts of northern North America. It is a deciduous shrub growing to 1–2 m tall. Common names include Bog Myrtle and Sweet Gale...
and fescue
Fescue
Festuce is a genus of about 300 species of perennial tufted grasses, belonging to the grass family Poaceae . The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, although the majority of the species are found in cool temperate areas...
s is generally abundant and contains various smaller flowering species such as Cloudberry
Cloudberry
Rubus chamaemorus is a rhizomatous herb native to alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest, producing amber-colored edible fruit similar to the raspberry or blackberry...
and Alpine Ladies-mantle
Alchemilla
Alchemilla is a genus of herbaceous perennial plants in the Rosaceae, and a popular garden herb with the common name Lady's mantle. There are about 300 species, the majority native to cool temperate and subarctic regions of Europe and Asia, with a few species native to the mountains of Africa,...
. Cliffs and mountains host a diversity of arctic and alpine plants including Alpine Pearlwort
Sagina
Sagina is a genus of 20–30 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae. These are flowering herbs native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere extending south to tropical mountain areas at high altitudes, reaching just south of the equator in Africa...
, Mossy Cyphal
Minuartia
Minuartia is a genus of small flowering plants, one of those commonly known as "sandwort" or "stitchwort". The genus is classed within the family Caryophyllaceae, the pink family, characterised by its opposite and decussate leaves....
, Mountain Avens
Dryas octopetala
Dryas octopetala is an arctic-alpine flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. It is a small prostrate evergreen subshrub forming large colonies, and is a popular flower in rock gardens...
and Fir Clubmoss. On the Hebridean
Hebrides
The Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
islands of the west coast, there are plantago
Plantago
Plantago is a genus of about 200 species of small, inconspicuous plants commonly called plantains. They share this name with the very dissimilar plantain, a kind of banana. Most are herbaceous plants, though a few are subshrubs growing to 60 cm tall. The leaves are sessile, but have a narrow...
pastures, which grow well in locations exposed to sea spray
Sea spray
Sea spray is a spray of water that forms when ocean waves crash.-Make up:As a result, salt spray contains a high concentration of mineral salts, particularly chloride anions.-Effects:...
and include Red Fescue
Fescue
Festuce is a genus of about 300 species of perennial tufted grasses, belonging to the grass family Poaceae . The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, although the majority of the species are found in cool temperate areas...
, Sea Plantain
Plantago
Plantago is a genus of about 200 species of small, inconspicuous plants commonly called plantains. They share this name with the very dissimilar plantain, a kind of banana. Most are herbaceous plants, though a few are subshrubs growing to 60 cm tall. The leaves are sessile, but have a narrow...
and Sea Pink
Armeria maritima
Armeria maritima is the botanical name for a species of flowering plant.It is a popular garden flower, known by several common names, including thrift, sea thrift, and sea pink. The plant has been distributed worldwide as a garden and cut flower...
. The machair landscapes include rare species
Rare species
A rare species is a group of organisms that are very uncommon or scarce. This designation may be applied to either a plant or animal taxon, and may be distinct from the term "endangered" or "threatened species" but not "extinct"....
such as Irish Lady's Tresses
Spiranthes
Spiranthes, commonly called Ladies'-tresses, is a genus of orchids Spiranthes, commonly called Ladies'-tresses, is a genus of orchids Spiranthes, commonly called Ladies'-tresses, is a genus of orchids (family (Orchidaceae) belonging to the subfamily Orchidoideae.It has a very wide, almost...
, Yellow Rattle
Yellow rattle
Yellow Rattle or Cockscomb, Rhinanthus minor, is a flowering plant in the genus Rhinanthus in the family Orobanchaceae, native to Europe and Western Asia....
and numerous orchids
Orchidaceae
The Orchidaceae, commonly referred to as the orchid family, is a morphologically diverse and widespread family of monocots in the order Asparagales. Along with the Asteraceae, it is one of the two largest families of flowering plants, with between 21,950 and 26,049 currently accepted species,...
along with more common species such as Marram and Buttercup, Ragwort, Bird's-foot Trefoil
Lotus corniculatus
Lotus corniculatus is a common flowering plant native to grassland temperate Eurasia and North Africa. The common name is Bird's-foot Trefoil , though the common name is often also applied to other members of the genus...
and Ribwort Plantain
Plantago lanceolata
Plantago lanceolata is a species of genus Plantago known by the common names ribwort plantain, English plantain, and narrowleaf plantain. It is a common weed of cultivated land....
. Scots Lovage
Ligusticum
Ligusticum is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the family Apiaceae, native to cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Its name is believed to derive from the Italian region of Liguria....
, (Ligusticum scoticum) first recorded in 1684 by Robert Sibbald
Robert Sibbald
Sir Robert Sibbald was a Scottish physician and antiquary.-Life:He was born in Edinburgh, the son of David Sibbald and Margaret Boyd...
, and the Oyster Plant
Mertensia
Mertensia is a genus of about 40 species of perennial herbaceous plants with bell-shaped blue flowers opening from pink-tinged buds. This is one of several plants commonly called bluebell.The genus is named after the German botanist Franz Carl Mertens....
are common plants of the coasts.
Aquatic species
BogbeanMenyanthes
Menyanthes is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the family Menyanthaceae containing the single species Menyanthes trifoliata...
and Water Lobelia
Lobelia dortmanna
Lobelia dortmanna is a species of Lobelia native to cool temperate regions of northern Europe and northern North America .It is a stoloniferous herbaceous...
are common plants of moorland pools and lochans. The Least
Nuphar pumila
Nuphar pumila is an aquatic perennial plant from the Nymphaeaceae family. It is also known as Least or Dwarf Water Lily because it is the dwarf species of Nupar lutea; while Nupar lutea has a star- shaped form of the stigma disc and glabrous leaf undersides, Nupar pumila has a round stigma disc...
(Nuphar pumila), Yellow
Nuphar lutea
Nuphar lutea is an aquatic plant of the family Nymphaeaceae, native to temperate regions of Europe, northwest Africa, and western Asia.-Growth:...
and White
Nymphaea alba
Nymphaea alba, also known as the European White Waterlily, White Lotus, or Nenuphar, is an aquatic flowering plant of the family Nymphaeaceae....
Water-lilies
Nymphaeaceae
Nymphaeaceae is a family of flowering plants. Members of this family are commonly called water lilies and live in freshwater areas in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains eight genera. There are about 70 species of water lilies around the world. The genus...
are also widespread. Pipewort has generated some botanical controversy regarding its discovery, classification and distribution. It was found growing on Skye
Skye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
in the 18th century, although there was subsequent confusion as to both the discoverer and the correct scientific name - now agreed to be Eriocaulon aquaticum. The European range of this plant is confined to Scotland and western Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and it is one of only a small number of species which is common in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, but very restricted in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
There are a few localised examples of the Rigid Hornwort
Ceratophyllum demersum
Ceratophyllum demersum is a species of Ceratophyllum. It is a submerged, free-floating aquatic plant, native to North America but nowadays having a cosmopolitan distribution in temperate and tropical regions...
(Ceratophyllum demersum).
Grasses and sedges
Grasses and sedges are common everywhere except duneDune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
systems (where marram grass may be locally abundant) and stony mountain tops and plateaux. The total number of species is large, 84 have been recorded on the verges of a single road in West Lothian
West Lothian
West Lothian is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders and South Lanarkshire....
.
Smooth Meadow-grass and Broad-leaved Meadow-grass
Poa trivialis
Poa trivialis , is a perennial plant, and is regarded in the USA as an ornamental plant and is of the Poa family.-Description:...
are widespread in damp lowland conditions, Wood Sedge (Carex sylvatica) in woodlands, and Oval Sedge and Early Hair-grass
Aira praecox
Aira praecox is a species of grass known by several common names, including yellow hairgrass and spike hairgrass. It is native to Europe. It also grows in North America as an introduced species, where it can be found on the east and west coasts in sandy or rocky areas, such as beaches and roadsides...
on upland moors. In damp conditions Phragmites
Phragmites
Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
reeds and several species of Juncus
Juncus
Juncus is a genus in the plant family Juncaceae. It consists of some 200 to 300 or more species of grassy plants commonly called rushes...
are found abundantly including Jointed Rush
Juncus articulatus
Juncus articulatus is a species of rush known by the common name Jointleaf Rush, and more ambiguously as "Jointed Rush" which can also refer to J. kraussii from Australia . It is native to Eurasia and much of Canada and the United States. It grows in moist areas, such as wet sand, and thrives in...
, Soft Rush and Toad Rush
Juncus bufonius
Juncus bufonius, known commonly as toad rush, is a common species of rush found worldwide. It grows in moist and muddy places and is considered a weed in many areas. This is an annual monocot that is quite variable in appearance. It is sometimes described as a complex of variants labeled with one...
, and less commonly the introduced species Slender Rush. Common Cottongrass is a familiar site on marshy land, but Saltmarsh Sedge (Carex salina) was only discovered for the first time in 2004 at the head of Loch Duich
Loch Duich
Loch Duich is a sea loch situated on the western coast of Scotland, in the Highlands.-History:In 1719, British forces burned many homesteads along the loch’s shores in the month preceding the Battle of Glen Shiel....
.
Endemic species
Shetland Mouse-earShetland Mouse-ear
Cerastium nigrescens, commonly known as the Shetland Mouse-ear, Shetland Mouse-eared Chickweed or Edmondston's Chickweed, is an endemic plant found in Shetland, Scotland....
(Cerastium nigrescens) is an endemic plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
found in Shetland. It was first recorded in 1837 by Shetland botanist Thomas Edmondston
Thomas Edmondston
Thomas Edmondston was a British-born botanist.The family of Edmondston was prominent in 19th century Shetland. Thomas Edmondston's uncle, also Thomas Edmondston, was laird of the Buness estate on Unst and host to many scientific visitors to Shetland...
. Although reported from two other sites in the 19th century, it currently grows only on two serpentine
Serpentine soil
A serpentine soil is derived from ultramafic rocks, in particular serpentinite, a rock formed by the hydration and metamorphic transformation of ultramafic rock from the Earth's mantle....
hills on the island of Unst
Unst
Unst is one of the North Isles of the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is the northernmost of the inhabited British Isles and is the third largest island in Shetland after the Mainland and Yell. It has an area of .Unst is largely grassland, with coastal cliffs...
.
The Scottish Primrose
Primula scotica
Primula scotica, commonly known as Scottish primrose, is a species of primrose that is endemic to the north coast of Scotland, including Caithness and Orkney. It is closely related to the Arctic species Primula stricta and Primula scandinavica.Primula scotica is easily distinguished from other...
(Primula scotica), is endemic to the north coast including Caithness
Caithness
Caithness is a registration county, lieutenancy area and historic local government area of Scotland. The name was used also for the earldom of Caithness and the Caithness constituency of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . Boundaries are not identical in all contexts, but the Caithness area is...
and Orkney. It is closely related to the Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
species Primula stricta and Primula scandinavica.
Young's Helleborine
Epipactis youngiana
Epipactis youngiana is an orchid....
(Epipactis youngiana) is a rare endemic orchid principally found on bings
Slag heap
A spoil tip is a pile built of accumulated spoil - the overburden removed during coal and ore mining. These waste materials are generally composed of shale, as well as smaller quantities of carboniferous sandstone and various other residues...
created by the coal-mining industry in the Central Lowlands
Central Lowlands
The Central Lowlands or Midland Valley is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and the Southern Uplands Fault to the south...
and classified as endangered.
Rare species
Diapensia
Diapensia lapponica is a plant in the family Diapensiaceae, the only circumpolar species in the genus Diapensia, the others being mainly in the Himalayas. It is a circumboreal arctic-alpine species which grows on exposed rocky ridges that are kept free from snow by high winds .It is a small...
, found only on the slopes of Sgurr an Utha, Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
and Mountain Bearberry, recorded at only a few mainland locations, and on Skye
Skye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
and Orkney. The pinewoods of Strathspey
Strathspey
Strathspey may refer to one of the following:* Strathspey, Scotland, an area in the Highlands of Scotland;* Strathspey ....
contain rare species such as Creeping Lady's Tresses
Goodyera repens
Goodyera repens, an orchid in the genus Goodyera, is called by the common name creeping lady's tresses in Anglophone Europe and dwarf rattlesnake plantain or lesser rattlesnake plantain in North America....
, Twinflower and the One-flowered Wintergreen
Moneses uniflora
Moneses uniflora Gray is a plant of the family of Ericaceae, that is indigenous to moist coniferous forests in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere from Spain to Japan and across North America...
. Plans to protect the Intermediate Wintergreen
Pyrola media
Pyrola media is a flowering plant in the genus Pyrola, native to northern and eastern Europe and Western Asia....
, also found here, were introduced in 2008. Other nationally rare species include Tufted Saxifrage
Tufted Saxifrage
The tufted saxifrage is a flower common to many arctic heights. It appears further south in mountainous areas of the Alps, Norway, Iceland, Siberia, and Alaska....
, Alpine Catchfly, Sword-leaved Helleborine
Sword-leaved Helleborine
Cephalanthera longifolia, common name the Sword-leaved Helleborine or Narrow-leaved Helleborine, is an herbaceous perennial plant with rhizome belonging to the family Orchidaceae.-Etymology:...
, Norwegian Sandwort
Arenaria (plant)
Arenaria is a genus of flowering plants, within the family Caryophyllaceae.Species of this genus are among those plants commonly known as "sandworts". Several species formerly classified within Arenaria are now classed in the genera Spergularia, Eremogone and Minuartia.Species include:*Arenaria...
, Dark-red Helleborine, Iceland Purslane
Koenigia
Koenigia is a genus of plants in the family Polygonaceae with about seven species. These include:*Koenigia islandica - Iceland Purslane....
, Small Cow-wheat
Melampyrum
Melampyrum is a genus of about 10-20 species of herbaceous flowering plants in the family Orobanchaceae, native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
and Yellow Oxytropis
Oxytropis campestris
Oxytropis campestris is a plant native to the Northwestern United States and all Canada, sometimes grown as an ornamental plant.It is found in prairies, woods, and meadows, and prefers gravelly and rocky slopes, where it grows most abundantly. The plant has numerous...
.
Invasive plants
A number of non-native, invasive species have been identified as a threat to native biodiversity, including Giant HogweedGiant Hogweed
Heracleum mantegazzianum, commonly known as giant hogweed, cartwheel-flower, wild parsnip, wild rhubarb, giant cow parsnip, or giant cow parsley, is a plant in the family Apiaceae. It typically grows to heights of , sometimes reaching...
, Japanese Knotweed
Japanese knotweed
Japanese Knotweed is a large, herbaceous perennial plant, native to eastern Asia in Japan, China and Korea...
and Rhododendron
Rhododendron ponticum
Rhododendron ponticum, called Common Rhododendron or Pontic Rhododendron, is a species of Rhododendron native to southern Europe and southwest Asia.-Description:...
. In May 2008 it was announced that psyllid lice from Japan, which predate on the Knotweed, may be introduced to the UK to bring the plant under control. This would be the first time that an alien species has been used in Britain in this way. Scientists at the Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International do not believe the lice will cause any environmental damage. Over-grazing caused by the large numbers of Red Deer
Red Deer
The red deer is one of the largest deer species. Depending on taxonomy, the red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being...
and sheep has also resulted in the impoverishment of moorland and upland habitats and a loss of native woodland.
Deciduous trees
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
s, four whitebeam
Whitebeam
The whitebeams are members of the Rosaceae family, comprising subgenus Aria of genus Sorbus, and hybrids involving species of this subgenus and members of subgenera Sorbus, Torminaria and Chamaemespilus. They are deciduous trees with simple or lobed leaves, arranged alternately...
s and three birch
Birch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...
and cherry
Prunus
Prunus is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes the plums, cherries, peaches, apricots and almonds. There are around 430 species spread throughout the northern temperate regions of the globe. Many members of the genus are widely cultivated for fruit and ornament.-Botany:Members of the genus...
species.
The Meikleour Beech hedges
Meikleour Beech Hedges
The Meikleour Beech Hedge , located near Meikleour, Perth and Kinross, Scotland, alongside the A93 Perth-Blairgowrie Road, was planted in the autumn of 1745 by Jean Mercer and her husband, Robert Murray Nairne on the Marquess of Lansdowne's Meikleour estate...
located in Perth and Kinross
Perth and Kinross
Perth and Kinross is one of 32 council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy Area. It borders onto the Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee City, Fife, Clackmannanshire, Stirling, Argyll and Bute and Highland council areas. Perth is the administrative centre...
were planted in the autumn of 1745 by Jean Mercer and her husband, Robert Murray Nairne. This European Beech
European Beech
Fagus sylvatica, the European Beech or Common Beech, is a deciduous tree belonging to the beech family Fagaceae.-Natural range:...
hedge, which is 530 metres (0.3 miles) in length, reaches 30 metres (100 ft) in height and is noted in the Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
as the tallest and longest hedge on Earth.
The Arran Whitebeams are species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
unique to the Isle of Arran
Isle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...
. The Arran Whitebeam
Sorbus arranensis
Sorbus arranensis, sometimes referred to as the Scottish or Arran Whitebeam is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the island of Arran in Scotland.-Range and habitat:...
(Sorbus arranensis) and the Cut-leaved Whitebeam
Sorbus pseudofennica
Sorbus pseudofennica is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is a naturally occurring hybrid caused by the Rock Whitebeam hybridising with the Rowan , then crossing back with S. aucuparia...
(S. pseudofennica) are amongst the most endangered tree species in the world if rarity is measured by numbers alone. Only 236 S. pseudofennica and 283 S. arranensis were recorded as mature trees in 1980. The trees developed in a highly complex fashion involving the Rock Whitebeam
Whitebeam
The whitebeams are members of the Rosaceae family, comprising subgenus Aria of genus Sorbus, and hybrids involving species of this subgenus and members of subgenera Sorbus, Torminaria and Chamaemespilus. They are deciduous trees with simple or lobed leaves, arranged alternately...
(S. rupicola), which is found on nearby Holy Isle
Holy Isle, Firth of Clyde
The Holy Isle, Firth of Clyde is one of a number of islands in the United Kingdom which go under the name "Holy Island". It is located in the Firth of Clyde off the west coast of central Scotland, inside Lamlash Bay on the larger island of Arran.- Details :The island is around long and around ...
but not Arran, interbreeding with the Rowan
Sorbus aucuparia
Sorbus aucuparia , is a species of the genus Sorbus, native to most of Europe except for the far south, and northern Asia...
(S. aucuparia) to produce the new species. In 2007 it was announced that two specimens of a third new hybrid, the Catacol Whitebeam (S. pseudomeinichii) had been discovered by researchers on Arran. This tree is a cross between the native Rowan and S. pseudofennica.
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
makes reference to Birnam Wood being used as camouflage for Malcolm Canmore’s
Malcolm III of Scotland
Máel Coluim mac Donnchada , was King of Scots...
army before the battle at Dunsinane with MacBeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
. There is an ancient tree, the Birnam
Birnam, Perth and Kinross
Birnam is a town in Perthshire, Scotland. The town originated from the Victorian era with the coming of the railway in 1856, although the place and name is well known because William Shakespeare mentioned Birnam Wood in Macbeth.-Location:...
Oak
Sessile Oak
Quercus petraea , the Sessile Oak, also known as the Durmast Oak, is a species of oak native to most of Europe, and into Anatolia.-Description:...
, standing a few hundred metres from the centre of Birnam. It may well have been part of Birnam Wood at the time of the battle 900 years ago, and remains part of the legend.
Research into the possible commercial use of Sea Buckthorn
Hippophae rhamnoides
Hippophae rhamnoides, the common sea-buckthorn, is a deciduous shrub species in the genus Hippophae.Common Sea-buckthorn branches are dense, stiff, and very thorny. The leaves are a distinct pale silvery-green, lanceolate, 3-8 cm long and less than 7 mm broad. It is dioecious, with male and female...
was undertaken by Moray College commencing in 2006. The orange berries can be processed into jams, liquors and ointments and the hardy species grows well even on exposed west coasts.
Conifers
Juniperus communis
Juniperus communis, the Common Juniper, is a species in the genus Juniperus, in the family Cupressaceae. It has the largest range of any woody plant, throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere from the Arctic south in mountains to around 30°N latitude in North America, Europe and Asia.-...
are the only coniferous trees definitely native to Scotland with Yew
Taxus baccata
Taxus baccata is a conifer native to western, central and southern Europe, northwest Africa, northern Iran and southwest Asia. It is the tree originally known as yew, though with other related trees becoming known, it may be now known as the English yew, or European yew.-Description:It is a small-...
a possible contender.
The Fortingall Yew
Fortingall Yew
The Fortingall Yew is an ancient yew in the churchyard of the village of Fortingall in Perthshire, Scotland. Various estimates have put its age at between 2,000 and 5,000 years; recent research into yew tree ages suggests that it is likely to be nearer the lower limit of 2,000 years...
is an ancient tree in the churchyard of the village of Fortingall
Fortingall
Fortingall is a small village in highland Perthshire, Scotland, in the glen of the River Lyon. Place-name Gaelic Fartairchill, 'church at the foot' . Its nearest sizable neighbours are Aberfeldy and Kenmore.According to legend it was the birthplace of Pontius Pilate...
in Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
. Various estimates have put its age at between 2,000 and 5,000 years; recent research into yew tree ages suggests that it is likely to be nearer the lower limit of 2,000 years. This still makes it the oldest tree in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, although there is an older Norway Spruce
Norway Spruce
Norway Spruce is a species of spruce native to Europe. It is also commonly referred to as the European Spruce.- Description :...
root system in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
At 64.3 metres (211 ft), a Grand Fir planted beside Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne
Loch Fyne is a sea loch on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound of Bute, making it the longest of the sea lochs...
, Argyll in the 1870s was named as the UK’s tallest tree in 2011. The next four tallest trees in the UK are all found in Scotland. The Stronardron Douglas Fir
Douglas-fir
Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...
which grows near Dunans Castle
Dunans Castle
Dunans Castle is a historic structure located in Glendaruel, in the Argyll and Bute region of Scotland. Shown on maps in 1590, the building was elaborated into a castle in 1860, the castle sits on of ground and in 2001, was ruined by fire.-History:...
in Argyll is recorded as 63.79 metres (209.3 ft). Diana’s Grove Grand Fir at Blair Castle
Blair Castle
Blair Castle stands in its grounds near the village of Blair Atholl in Perthshire in Scotland. It is the home of the Clan Murray family, who hold the title of Duke of Atholl, though the current Duke, John Murray, lives in South Africa....
, which was measured at 62.7 metres (205.7 ft) is the next highest. Dùghall Mòr (Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
: "big dark stranger"), another Douglas Fir located in Reelig Glen near Inverness, reaches just over 62 metres (203.4 ft) in height and was considered to be the tallest tree in Britain until a survey undertaken by Sparsholt College
Sparsholt College Hampshire
Sparsholt College Hampshire is a Further Education and Higher Education college located at Sparsholt near Winchester, Hampshire, in the south of England...
in 2009 (which named the Stronardron fir as the highest). This survey concluded that the Hermitage
The Hermitage (Scotland)
The Hermitage is a National Trust for Scotland-protected site in Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross. Located just to the west of the A9, it sits on the banks of the River Braan in Craigvinean Forest...
Douglas Fir near Dunkeld
Dunkeld
Dunkeld is a small town in Strathtay, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It is about 15 miles north of Perth on the eastern side of the A9 road into the Scottish Highlands and on the opposite side of the Tay from the Victorian village of Birnam. Dunkeld and Birnam share a railway station, on the...
came next in height, standing at 61.31 metres (201 ft).
Ferns
BrackenBracken
Bracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...
is very common in upland areas, Beech Fern
Phegopteris connectilis
Phegopteris connectilis, commonly known as Long Beech Fern, is a species of fern native to forests of the Holarctic Kingdom.Unlike its close relative, Phegopteris hexagonoptera, which is terrestrial, this species is often epipetric as well as terrestrial.This species is normally apogamous, with a...
in woods and other shaded locations and Scaly Male Fern
Dryopteris affinis
Dryopteris affinis is fern native to western and southern Europe and southwestern Asia....
in wooded or open areas. Wilsons Filmy-fern is a common upland variety in the Highlands, along with the Tunbridge Filmy-fern, Alpine Lady-fern
Athyrium distentifolium
Athyrium distentifolium commonly known as Alpine Lady-fern is a fern found in widely in the Northern Hemisphere.It is a common upland variety above 600 metres in the Highlands of Scotland, with more than 10% of the UK population being found in the Cairngorm mountains, especially on scree...
and the rarer stunted form Newman’s Lady-fern
Athyrium flexile
Athyrium flexile, commonly known as Newman's Lady-fern, is a fern endemic to Scotland.It is an upland variety typically found above 750 metres on screes made up of siliceous rocks such as quartzite and granite in the Highlands where it is found at only four sites...
(A. distentifolium var. flexile) which is endemic to Scotland. The Killarney Fern
Trichomanes speciosum
Trichomanes speciosum commonly known as Killarney Fern is a species of fern found widely in Western Europe. It is most abundant in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Brittany and Canary Islands, Madeira and the Azores, but is also found in other locations including France, Spain, Portugal and Italy.The...
, once found on Arran
Isle of Arran
Arran or the Isle of Arran is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, and with an area of is the seventh largest Scottish island. It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire and the 2001 census had a resident population of 5,058...
was thought to be extinct in Scotland, but has been discovered on Skye
Skye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
in its gametophyte
Gametophyte
A gametophyte is the haploid, multicellular phase of plants and algae that undergo alternation of generations, with each of its cells containing only a single set of chromosomes....
form.
Scotland's populations of Alpine Woodsia
Woodsia alpina
Woodsia alpina, commonly known as Alpine Woodsia, is a fern found in northern latitudes in North America and Eurasia. Also known as Northern Woodsia or Alpine Cliff Fern, it is typically found in crevices, scree slopes and cliffs containing slate and calcareous rocks, especially...
and Oblong Woodsia
Woodsia ilvensis
Woodsia ilvensis, commonly known as Oblong Woodsia, is a fern found in North America and northern Eurasia. Also known as Rusty Woodsia or Rusty Cliff Fern, it is typically found on sunny, exposed cliffs and rocky slopes and on thin, dry, acidic soils.-Distribution:Its distribution is circumpolar...
are on the edge of their natural ranges. The UK distribution of the former is confined to Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
, Perthshire
Perthshire
Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...
, Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
and north Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, and of the latter to Angus, the Moffatt
Moffatt
Moffatt may refer to:* Moffat , spelling variant* Moffatt, New Translation, 1926 translation of the Bible* Moffatt oxidation, also known as Pfitzner-Moffatt oxidation* Moffatt Township, Michigan* The Moffatts, Canadian band- See also :...
Hills, north Wales and two locations in England. The plants were first identified as separate species by John Bolton in 1785 and came under severe threat from Victorian fern collectors
Pteridomania
Pteridomania or Fern-Fever was a craze for ferns. Victorian decorative arts presented the fern motif in pottery, glass, metal, textiles, wood, printed paper, and sculpture, with ferns "appearing on everything from christening presents to gravestones and memorials."-Description:Pteridomania, meaning...
in the mid 19th century. Cystopteris dickieana
Cystopteris dickieana
Cystopteris dickieana commonly known as Dickie's Bladder-fern is a fern with a wide distribution in the Northern Hemisphere. There is debate amongst botanists as to whether it is a species in its own right or a variant of C. fragilis....
, first discovered in a sea cave in Kincardineshire
Kincardineshire
The County of Kincardine, also known as Kincardineshire or The Mearns was a local government county on the coast of northeast Scotland...
, is a rare fern in a UK context whose distribution is confined to Scotland, although recent research suggests that it may be a variant of C. fragilis
Cystopteris
Cystopteris is a genus of ferns. These are known generally as bladderferns or fragile ferns. They are found in temperate areas worldwide. This is a very diverse genus and within a species individuals can look quite different, especially in harsh environments where they experience stress and remain...
rather than a species in its own right.
Non-vascular plants
Scotland provides ideal growing conditions for many bryophyteBryophyte
Bryophyte is a traditional name used to refer to all embryophytes that do not have true vascular tissue and are therefore called 'non-vascular plants'. Some bryophytes do have specialized tissues for the transport of water; however since these do not contain lignin, they are not considered to be...
species, due to the damp climate, absence of lengthy droughts and winters without protracted hard frosts. In addition, the country's diverse geology, numerous exposed rocky crags and screes and deep, damp ravines coupled with a relatively pollution-free atmosphere enables a diversity of species to exist. This unique assemblage is in marked contrast to the relative impoverishment of the native vascular plants. There are about 920 species of moss and liverwort in Scotland, with 87% of UK and 60% of European bryophytes represented. Scotland's bryophyte flora is globally important and this small country may host as many as 5% of the world’s species (in 0.05% of the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
's land area, similar in size to South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
or Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
). The mountains of the North-west Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
host a unique bryophyte community called the "Northern Hepatic Mat", which is dominated by a variety of rare liverworts, such as Pleurozia purpurea and Anastrophyllum alpinum.
Scotland has played an important part in the development of the understanding of bryology
Bryology
Bryology is the branch of botany concerned with the scientific study of bryophytes . Bryophytes were first studied in detail in the 18th century...
, with pioneers such as Archibald Menzies
Archibald Menzies
Archibald Menzies was a Scottish surgeon, botanist and naturalist.- Life and career :Menzies was born at Easter Stix in the parish of Weem, in Perthshire. While working with his elder brother William at the Royal Botanic Gardens, he drew the attention of Dr John Hope, professor of botany at...
and Sir William Hooker commencing explorations at the end of the eighteenth century. Tetrodontium brownianum
Tetrodontium brownianum
Tetrodontium brownianum, is a species of moss commonly known as Brown's Tetrodontium Moss or Four-tooth Moss. It is widely distributed. In North America it is found in Washington state and British Columbia on the west coast and from Newfoundland to Ohio to the east...
is named after Robert Brown
Robert Brown (botanist)
Robert Brown was a Scottish botanist and palaeobotanist who made important contributions to botany largely through his pioneering use of the microscope...
who first discovered the plant growing at Roslin
Roslin
Roslin may refer to:Scotland:*Roslin, Midlothian, a village in Midlothian, south of Edinburgh, Scotland, Home to the famous Rosslyn Chapel*Roslin Castle*Roslin Institute, where Dolly the Sheep was cloned...
near Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and several other species such as Plagiochila atlantica and Anastrepta orcadensis
Anastrepta orcadensis
Anastrepta orcadensis also known as Orkney Notchwort is a liverwort found in the United States, Canada, and widely in Europe.Its existence was first discovered on Ward Hill, on the island of Hoy, Orkney, Scotland by Hooker in 1808...
were also first discovered in the country.
Mosses
Sphagnum
Sphagnum is a genus of between 151 and 350 species of mosses commonly called peat moss, due to its prevalence in peat bogs and mires. A distinction is made between sphagnum moss, the live moss growing on top of a peat bog on one hand, and sphagnum peat moss or sphagnum peat on the other, the...
, is common and harvested commercially for use in hanging baskets and wreaths, and for medical purposes. Glittering Wood-moss
Hylocomium splendens
Hylocomium splendens, commonly known as Glittering Wood-moss, Stair-step Moss and Mountain Fern Moss, is a perennial clonal moss with a widespread distribution in Northern Hemisphere boreal forests. It is commonly found in Europe, Russia, Alaska and Canada, where it is often the most abundant moss...
, Woolly Hair-moss (Racomitrium lanuginosum) and Bristly Haircap (Polytrichum piliferum) are amongst many other abundant natives. Endemic species include the Scottish Thread-moss
Pohlia scotica
Pohlia scotica, commonly known as Scottish Thread-moss, is a moss endemic to Scotland. The earliest records date to 1964 and this moss was recognised as a distinct species in 1982. The largest populations are in Argyll with smaller populations in Dunbartonshire and Easter Ross. Its favoured habitat...
, Dixon’s Thread Moss
Bryum dixonii
Bryum dixonii, commonly known as Dixon's Thread-moss, is a moss endemic to Scotland. The species occupies montane habitats, and although rare it has a wide distribution including the central and north-west Highlands, and the islands of Skye, Rùm and St Kilda. Originally discovered on Ben Narnain,...
and Scottish Beard-moss
Bryoerythrophyllum caledonicum
Bryoerythrophyllum caledonicum, commonly known as Scottish Beard-moss, is a moss endemic to Scotland. Recognised as a distinct species in 1982, it had been collected occasionally from 1891 onwards under other names. The largest populations are in the Breadalbane mountains including Ben Lawers with...
. In the Cairngorms there are small stands of Snow Brook-moss
Hygrohypnum styriacum
Hygrohypnum styriacum, commonly known as Snow Brook-moss or Hygrohypnum Moss is a species of moss found in the Northern Hemisphere.It is present in Greenland Iceland, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Sweden and Scotland...
and Alpine Thyme-moss
Plagiomnium medium
Plagiomnium medium, commonly known as Alpine Thyme-moss, or Medium Plagiomnium Moss is a moss found in montane habitats in the Northern Hemisphere.Research published in 1988 showed that is a hybrid of P. ellipticum and P...
, and an abundance of Icy Rock-moss
Andreaea frigida
Andreaea frigida, commonly known as Icy Rock-moss, is a moss endemic to Europe which is found in mountainous regions in Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Rumania, Poland, and Spain...
, the latter's UK population being found only here and at one site in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The west coast is rich in oceanic mosses such as Cyclodictyon laetevirens and the Ben Lawers range also provides habitats for various rare species such as Tongue-leaved Gland Moss
Tayloria lingulata
Tayloria lingulata, commonly known as Tongue-leaved Gland Moss, Lingulate Dung Moss, or Marsh Collar-moss is a moss found in montane habitats in the Northern Hemisphere including Europe, Asia and North America....
. Perthshire Beard-moss
Didymodon mamillosus
Didymodon mamillosus, commonly known as Perthshire Beard-moss is a species of moss endemic to Europe. It occurs at only five sites including one in Scotland where it isclassified as "Critically Endangered"...
is a European endemic, occurring at only four European sites outside Scotland and it is
classified as "Critically Endangered".
Liverworts and hornworts
There are numerous common liverwortsMarchantiophyta
The Marchantiophyta are a division of bryophyte plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like other bryophytes, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information....
such as Conocephalum conicum and Marchantia polymorpha
Marchantia polymorpha
Marchantia polymorpha, sometimes known as the common liverwort or umbrella liverwort, is a large liverwort with a wide distribution around the world. It is variable in appearance and has several subspecies. It is dioecious, having separate male and female plants.-Description:It is a thallose...
. Autumn Flapwort (Jamesoniella autumnali), a nationally scarce species most commonly found in the sessile oak woods of western Scotland, was discovered at a site on Ben Lomond
Ben Lomond
Ben Lomond , , is a distinctive mountain in the Scottish Highlands. Situated on the eastern shore of Loch Lomond, it is the most southerly of the Munros...
in 2008. The species is named after the Scottish botanist, William Jameson
William Jameson
William Jameson was a Scottish-Ecuadorian botanist. He was born in Edinburgh and studied at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. He made several voyages as a ship's surgeon, first to Baffin Bay, then to South America. In 1826 he settled in Quito, Ecuador. He was then appointed professor of...
. The high Cairngorms provide sites for a variety of other unusual liverworts
Marchantiophyta
The Marchantiophyta are a division of bryophyte plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like other bryophytes, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of genetic information....
including Marsupella arctica
Marsupella arctica
Marsupella arctica, commonly known as Arctic Rustwort, is a species of liverwort found in the Northern Hemisphere. It is present in Alaska and Greenland and has a European distribution confined to Scotland and Svalbard...
, the European distribution of which is confined to two sites here and Svalbard
Svalbard
Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...
. Hornwort
Hornwort
Hornworts are a group of bryophytes, or non-vascular plants, comprising the division Anthocerotophyta. The common name refers to the elongated horn-like structure, which is the sporophyte. The flattened, green plant body of a hornwort is the gametophyte plant.Hornworts may be found worldwide,...
s are scarce in Scotland, Carolina Hornwort (Phaeoceros carolinianus) for example, having been found only in Lauderdale
Lauderdale
Lauderdale, denoting "dale of the river Leader", is the dale and region around that river in south-eastern Scotland.It can also refer to:-People:*Earls of Lauderdale*Lord Lauderdale, member of The Cabal of Charles II of England-Place names:Australia...
.
Lichens
Lichens are abundant, with 37% of European species represented in just 0.75% of the European land area. Most rock surfaces, except those in very exposed places, or that are kept constantly wet by sea or fresh water, become grown with lichens. Reindeer MossCladonia rangiferina
Cladonia rangiferina, also known as Reindeer lichen , lat., is a light-colored, fruticose lichen belonging to the family Cladoniaceae. It grows in both hot and cold climates in well-drained, open environments. Found primarily in areas of alpine tundra, it is extremely cold-hardy.Other common names...
(Cladonia rangiferina) is a common species. The trunks and branches of large trees are an important lichen habitat, Tree Lungwort being particularly conspicuous. In the past lichens were widely used for dye
Dye
A dye is a colored substance that has an affinity to the substrate to which it is being applied. The dye is generally applied in an aqueous solution, and requires a mordant to improve the fastness of the dye on the fiber....
ing clothing.
Graphis alboscripta
Graphis alboscripta
Graphis alboscripta commonly known as White Script Lichen is a species of epiphytic lichen that is endemic to the west coast of Scotland. Nationally rare, its distribution is confined to hazel woodlands....
and Halecania rhypodiza are endemic species. The former is found in the hazel woodlands of the west coast and the latter at only two sites in the Highlands. The British ranges of 35 species are confined to the Cairngorm Mountains. These include Alectoria ochroleuca, Rinodian parasitica and Cladonia trassii. Other nationally rare species found here are Jamesiella scotica
Jamesiella scotica
Jamesiella scotica is a species of lichen that is thought to be endemic to the United Kingdom and Ireland. In the UK it occurs in montane habitats in England, Wales and Scotland at heights of over 200 metres, thriving on decomposing bryophytes on base-rich soils.-Distribution and...
, Cladonia botrytes and Ramalina polymorpha.
Conservation
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. There are various public sector organisations with an important role in the stewardship of the country's flora. Scottish Natural Heritage
Scottish Natural Heritage
Scottish Natural Heritage is a Scottish public body. It is responsible for Scotland's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and scenic diversity. It advises the Scottish Government and acts as a government agent in the delivery of conservation designations, i.e...
is the statutory body responsible for natural heritage management in Scotland. One of their duties is to establish National Nature Reserves. Until 2004 there were 73, but a review carried out in that year resulted in a significant number of sites losing their NNR status, and as of 2006 there are 55. The Forestry Commission
Forestry Commission
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....
in Scotland serves as the forestry department of the Scottish Government and is one of the country's largest landowners. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee is the statutory adviser to Government on UK and international nature conservation.
The country has two national park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
s. Cairngorms National Park
Cairngorms National Park
The Cairngorms National Park is a national park in north east Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, set up in 2002. The park covers the Cairngorms range of mountains, and...
includes the largest area of arctic mountain landscape in the UK. Sites designated as of importance to natural heritage take up 39% of the land area, two thirds of which are of Europe-wide importance. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park is a national park in Scotland centred on Loch Lomond, and includes several ranges of hills, the Trossachs being the most famous...
includes Britain's largest body of freshwater, the mountains of Breadalbane
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
and the sea lochs of Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
.
There are also numerous charitable and voluntary organisations with an important role to play, of which the more prominent include the following. The National Trust for Scotland
National Trust for Scotland
The National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland describes itself as the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to...
is the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage. With over 270,000 members it is the largest conservation charity in Scotland. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...
promotes conservation of birds and other wildlife through the protection and re-creation of habitats. The John Muir Trust
John Muir Trust
The John Muir Trust is a Scottish charity established as a membership organisation in 1983 to conserve wild land and wild places for the benefit of all...
is a charity whose main role is as a guardian of wild land and wildlife, through the ownership of land and the promotion of education and conservation
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
. The trust owns and manages estates in various locations, including Knoydart, Assynt
Assynt
Assynt is a civil parish in west Sutherland, Highland, Scotland – north of Ullapool.It is famous for its landscape and its remarkable mountains...
, and on the isle of Skye
Skye
Skye or the Isle of Skye is the largest and most northerly island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate out from a mountainous centre dominated by the Cuillin hills...
. Trees for Life
Trees for Life (Scotland)
Trees for Life is a registered charity in Findhorn, Moray, formed in 1989 by Alan Watson Featherstone, as a direct result of the inspiration and example of Richard St. Barbe Baker, the 'Man of the Trees'...
is a charity that aims to restore a "wild forest" in the Northwest Highlands
Northwest Highlands
The Northwest Highlands are the northern third of Scotland that is separated from the Grampian Mountains by the Great Glen . The region comprises , Assynt, Caithness and Sutherland. The Caledonian Canal, which extends from Loch Linnhe in the west, via Loch Ness to the Moray Firth in the north...
and Grampian Mountains
Grampian Mountains (Scotland)
The Grampian Mountains or Grampians are one of the three major mountain ranges in Scotland, occupying a considerable portion of the Scottish Highlands in northeast Scotland.-Extent:...
.
Under the auspices of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
s Habitats Directive, as at 31 March 2003 a total of 230 sites in Scotland covering an area of 8748.08 km² (3,377.7 sq mi) had been submitted by the UK government to the European Commission as candidate Special Areas of Conservation (cSAC).
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom and was implemented to comply with the Directive 2009/147/EC on the conservation of wild birds...
prohibits the uprooting of plants without a landowner's permission and the collection of any part of the most threatened species, which are listed in Schedule 8.
Flora in Scottish culture
The thistle
Thistle
Thistle is the common name of a group of flowering plants characterised by leaves with sharp prickles on the margins, mostly in the family Asteraceae. Prickles often occur all over the plant – on surfaces such as those of the stem and flat parts of leaves. These are an adaptation that protects the...
has been one of the national emblem of the Scots nation since the reign of Alexander III
Alexander III of Scotland
Alexander III was King of Scots from 1249 to his death.-Life:...
(1249–1286) and was used on silver coin
Silver coin
Silver coins are possibly the oldest mass produced form of coinage. Silver has been used as a coinage metal since the times of the Greeks. Their silver drachmas were popular trade coins....
s issued by James III
James III of Scotland
James III was King of Scots from 1460 to 1488. James was an unpopular and ineffective monarch owing to an unwillingness to administer justice fairly, a policy of pursuing alliance with the Kingdom of England, and a disastrous relationship with nearly all his extended family.His reputation as the...
in 1470. Today, it forms part of the emblem of the Scottish Rugby Union
Scottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
. As legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
has it, an invading army had attempted to sneak up at night on the Scots. One, perhaps barefoot
Barefoot
Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. Being barefoot is regarded as a human's natural state, though for functional, fashion and social reasons footwear is worn, at least on some occasions...
ed, unwelcome foreign soldier stumbled upon a Scots Thistle, and cried out in pain
Pain
Pain is an unpleasant sensation often caused by intense or damaging stimuli such as stubbing a toe, burning a finger, putting iodine on a cut, and bumping the "funny bone."...
, thus alerting Scots to their presence. Some sources suggest the specific occasion was the Battle of Largs
Battle of Largs
The Battle of Largs was an engagement fought between the armies of Norway and Scotland near the present-day town of Largs in North Ayrshire on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland on 2 October 1263. It was the most important military engagement of the Scottish-Norwegian War. The Norwegian forces were...
, which marked the beginning of the departure of the Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
monarch Haakon IV of Norway
Haakon IV of Norway
Haakon Haakonarson , also called Haakon the Old, was king of Norway from 1217 to 1263. Under his rule, medieval Norway reached its peak....
, who had harried the coast for some years. Spiky plants such as brambles appear to have been used around forts since time immemorial, so the story, whether it factually relates to the Haakon episode or not, likely is the culmination of more than one such event over time. In some variants, it is invading English which stumble on a thistle, but the story predates this time.
Numerous plants are referred to in Scottish song and verse. These include Robert Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
A Red, Red Rose
A Red, Red Rose
"My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose" is a 1794 song in Scots by Robert Burns based on traditional sources. The song is also referred to by the title My Love is Like A Red, Red Rose or Red, Red Rose and is often published as a poem.-The poem:...
, Hugh MacDiarmid
Hugh MacDiarmid
Hugh MacDiarmid is the pen name of Christopher Murray Grieve , a significant Scottish poet of the 20th century. He was instrumental in creating a Scottish version of modernism and was a leading light in the Scottish Renaissance of the 20th century...
's A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle
A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle
A Drunk Man Looks at the Thistle is a long poem by Hugh MacDiarmid written in Scots and published in 1926. It is composed as a form of monologue with influences from stream of consciousness genres of writing...
, Sorley MacLean
Sorley MacLean
Sorley MacLean was one of the most significant Scottish poets of the 20th century.-Early life:He was born at Osgaig on the island of Raasay on 26 October 1911, where Scottish Gaelic was the first language. He attended the University of Edinburgh and was an avid shinty player playing for the...
's Hallaig
Hallaig
Hallaig is a poem by Sorley MacLean. It was originally written in Scots Gaelic and has also been translated into both English and Lowland Scots. A recent translation was made by Seamus Heaney, an Irish Nobel Prize winner....
, Harry Lauder
Harry Lauder
Sir Henry Lauder , known professionally as Harry Lauder, was an international Scottish entertainer, described by Sir Winston Churchill as "Scotland's greatest ever ambassador!"-Early life:...
's I Love A Lassie and in the 21st century, Runrig
Runrig
Runrig are a Scottish Celtic rock group formed in Skye, in 1973 under the name 'The Run Rig Dance Band'. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included songwriters Rory Macdonald and Calum Macdonald. The current line-up also includes longtime members Malcolm Jones, Iain Bayne, and more...
's And The Accordions Played. The last two lyrics include a reference to the bluebell. The "Scottish Bluebell" is Campanula rotundifolia, (known elsewhere as the "Harebell") rather than Hyacinthoides non-scripta
Common Bluebell
Hyacinthoides non-scripta, commonly known as the common bluebell, is a spring-flowering bulbous perennial plant. -Taxonomy:...
, the "Common Bluebell".
Trees held an important place in Gaelic culture from the earliest times. Particularly large trees were venerated, and the most valuable such as oak, Common Hazel
Corylus avellana
Corylus avellana, the Common Hazel, is a species of hazel native to Europe and western Asia, from the British Isles south to Iberia, Greece, Turkey and Cyprus, north to central Scandinavia, and east to the central Ural Mountains, the Caucasus, and northwestern Iran. It is an important component of...
and Apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
were classed as "nobles". The less important Common Alder, Common Hawthorn and Gean were classed as "commoners", and there were "lower orders" and "slaves" such as Eurasian Aspen
Populus tremula
Populus tremula, commonly called aspen, common aspen, Eurasian aspen, European aspen, trembling poplar, or quaking aspen, is a species of poplar native to cool temperate regions of Europe and Asia, from the British Isles east to Kamchatka, north to inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia and...
and Juniper. The alphabet was learned as a mnemonic
Mnemonic
A mnemonic , or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something,...
using tree names. Rowan was regularly planted close to Highland houses as a protection from witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
.
Various plants have apotropeic qualities, notably Mountain Ash
Sorbus aucuparia
Sorbus aucuparia , is a species of the genus Sorbus, native to most of Europe except for the far south, and northern Asia...
. Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) may have been used as a hallucinogen as long ago as the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period. This tradition has recently been taken up once again by New Agers.
See also
- Botanical Society of ScotlandBotanical Society of ScotlandThe Botanical Society of Scotland is the national learned society for botanists of Scotland. It was founded in 1839 as the Botanical Society of Edinburgh, changing its name in 1991, and incorporates the Cryptogamic Society of Scotland, founded in 1875.The Society's activities include lectures ,...
- Gardens in ScotlandGardens in Scotland-Argyll and Bute:*Achamore Gardens on Gigha*An Cala on Seil*Ardkinglas Estate , Cairndow*Ardnaiseig*Arduaine*Bargullan*Colonsay House gardens*Crarae, run by the National Trust for Scotland *Eckford Gardens...
:Category:Scottish botanists
- List of Scottish plants
:Category:Lists of the vascular plants of the British Isles
- List of the mosses of Britain and Ireland
- Fauna of ScotlandFauna of ScotlandThe fauna of Scotland is generally typical of the northwest European part of the Palearctic ecozone, although several of the country's larger mammals were hunted to extinction in historic times and human activity has also led to various species of wildlife being introduced...
- Traditional dyes of the Scottish HighlandsTraditional dyes of the Scottish HighlandsTraditional dyes of the Scottish Highlands are thenative vegetable dyes used in Scottish Gaeldom.The following are the principal dyestuffs with the colours they produce. Several of the tints are very bright, but have now been superseded by various mineral dyes. The Latin names are given where known...
, many of which use plants. - Forestry in the United KingdomForestry in the United KingdomForestry is the management of trees and forests for environmental or economic gain. The United KingdomThe United Kingdom is a political unit , the British Isles is a geographical unit , and Great Britain is the name of the largest of those islands...