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Plea to repel Spain's blooming nuisance
Emma Dunlop THE common British bluebell may be a thing of the past unless drastic action is taken to save it from Spanish invaders.
The bluebell is widely regarded as an emblem of the British countryside, covering forest floors up and down the country.
The arrival of spring is associated with the flowers of the hawthorn, the return of the swifts and, of course, the violet-blue carpets of bluebells.
It was even recently voted Britain's favourite wildflower by members of the public in a Plantlife survey.
The native bluebell – Hyacinthoides non-scripta – can be found throughout Northern Europe, but nowhere more abundantly than in Britain where the UK is home to almost half the world's population.
But this image may well be relegated to photo albums and films unless something is done to stop the spread of a mysterious Mediterranean weed – a Spanish cousin of the bluebell.
It is taking root across the countryside, forcing out and killing the native bluebell.
One of the many places being affected is woodland around north Derbyshire.
Now Chesterfield Council is calling on an army of volunteers to help.
Local people can take part in a survey and plant native bluebells in their gardens.
A spokesman from the council said: "Our native bluebell faces several serious threats, including habitat loss and, more recently, invasion by Spanish bluebells."
He said the Spanish bluebell was first introduced to Britain around the 1600's by gardeners. It was favoured over the wild bluebells because it grows almost anywhere, and this advantage eventually enabled it to escape from gardens into the wild.
He added: "Having escaped into the wild, the Spanish bluebells are able to hybridise with our native bluebell to produce fertile offspring, an unusual occurrence in nature. These fertile hybrids perpetuate the cycle of hybridisation and it is feared that in time we may lose our native bluebell altogether.
"Don't let our native bluebells become a thing of the past."
He is urging all green-fingered residents to take part in The Great Bluebell Swap – an exchange programme to replace the Spanish bluebells in gardens with native bluebells.
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Weather for Yorkshire
Saturday 11 February 2012
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