Wild Flowers - Pink or Red

Quite a lot of our flowers are pink and this page shows some of those that are fairly common in the Park.

Redshank
Redshank

Usually has reddish stems and a dark patch in the middle of each leaf. Fowers from June until October.

Great Willowherb
Great Willowherb

This very tall plant can grow up to 2 metres in damp habitats but only usually flowers during July and August.

Red Clover
Red Clover

A very common low-growing plant with distinctive crescent marks on the leaves. Flowers from May until October.

Knapweed 
Knapweed

A very common plant that flowers from June until September in a wide range of grassy places.

Field Bindweed
Field Bindweed

A plant that sometimes twines around other plants to reach great heights. Flowers from June until September.

Herb Robert
Herb Robert

A widespread member of the Geranium family that has a long flowering season, from April until October. 

Water-pepper
Water-pepper

This plant is very common on the flood meadows. It has long drooping spikes of pale pink flowers that appear from July until September 

Spear Thistle
Spear Thistle

Told from our other thistles by its very spiney leaves and large flower head, it  favours grassland and flowers from July until September.

Cut-leaved Cranesbill
Cut-leaved Cranesbill

Another member of the Geranium family, this one has distinctive leaves and flowers from May until September.

Scarlet Pimpernel
Scarlet Pimpernel

Not very common in the valley but the colour of its flowers makes this plant unmistakeable. It has a fairly short flowering season; June until August.

Red Dead-nettle
Red Dead-nettle

This distinctive annual flowers from May until September and spreads very easily

Dog-rose
Dog-rose

A scrambling hedgerow shrub that flowers in June and July and produces bright red, egg-shaped, hips.

Common Vetch
Common Vetch

This vetch produces flowers from April until September, either singly or in pairs. It grows in grassland or hedgerows.

Red Campion
Red Campion

This common hedgerow plant has a very long flowering season; from March until October

Rosebay Willowherb
Rosebay Willowherb

This tall plant is very common across the Park and flowers from July until September.

Common Centaury
Common Centaury

Found in dry, grassy places and along the coast path, this quite short plant flowers from June until September.

More Information

The Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland has a page with links to books, websites and downloadable files to help you identify wild plants.

A useful free guide was produced by the National Plant Monitoring Scheme.

A useful book is “Collins complete guide to British Wild Flowers”.

Photos on this page by Peter Hunnisett

Footpaths - 1 January

The valley is still flooded and all paths across the lower part of the valley are impassable, as is most of the path along the river.

Report overgrown rights of way to East Sussex and other paths to the Friends of Combe Valley.

Latest News

Waxwings

December 2023 saw a group of Waxwings visiting the Park to sample the berries. Several hundred visit Britain each winter.

New on this website

August 2023 - a set of new pages describing some of the more common flowering plants has been added to the "Wildlife" section of the site.