BORDER BRYOLOGISTS

Some bryologists bryologising

Our meetings are to help beginners learn their mosses and liverworts, rather than high-powered recording sessions. All are on Sundays, and start at 10.30 a.m. unless otherwise stated. Please bring sandwiches.

You may wish to bring with you a copy of the British Bryological Society's Mosses and Liverworts of Britain and Ireland: a Field-guide (2010).

You are very welcome to suggest venues for future outdoor meetings; please include grid references and details for parking. In case of any queries, contact the group leader:

Mark Lawley, 12A Castleview Terrace, Ludlow, SY8 2NG
Tel: 01584 876564
Email: mrbryology@gmail.com

2023

22nd
October

Elan Valley, Radnorshire
Meet at Elan Visitor Centre (SN 9289647). We will visit Cnwch and Cwm yr Escob woods above the village, and wood-pasture at Cae Melyn.

This joint meeting with Biodiversity Information Services and Celtic Rainforest is part of the British Bryological Society’s centenary celebration and is especially for people who are just starting to look at mosses and liverworts.

12th
November

Glazeley
Peter Thompson has invited us to Glazeley, 3 miles south of Bridgnorth, Shropshire, where we will explore the churchyard and an arable field, plus the banks, bed and tributaries of Borle Brook and the surrounding mixed woodland. Wellington boots are recommended, as we will need to cross the Borle Brook a couple of times.

Meet in the car park at Glazeley Church (SO 703882). Approaching from the south, after driving through Glazeley village and out into the country, look out for a small red post box on the right-hand side of the road, which is partly concealed by a telegraph pole. The entrance to the churchyard is only about 10 to 15 metres beyond this post box. There is a red telephone box right next to the entrance to the church.

2024

14th
January

Wapley Hill
We will explore Wapley Hill in north-west Herefordshire. Forestry tracks can be very bryologically rewarding, with varying dampness and often some base-enrichment from imported hardcore. There is also a disused quarry to explore. Meet in the forestry car park at SO 359622.

11th
February

Kidderminster
This is a joint meeting with the Worcestershire Moss Group, and we look forward to finding 'carpets of moss' in Kidderminster, although no bryophytes have yet been recorded there. We will follow a circular route round part of the town, examining the banks of the River Stour and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal, walls and gravestones at St. Mary and All Saints' Church, secondary woodland and the margins of Puxton Marsh.

Park and meet at the northern end of Puxton Lane (follow road-side advertising sign that says This Way to Bond Worth fine carpets and flooring). Park in large open area at the road-end alongside the Bond Worth warehouse, Townshend Works, Puxton Lane, Kidderminster DY11 5DF (Grid Ref: SO 82474 77209).

There are toilet and refreshment facilities at Sainsbury’s supermarket (about halfway around our circuit).

10th
March

Meifod
Meet in the car park at Meifod (SJ 153133), Montgomeryshire, from where we will explore the churchyard, the bank of the River Vyrnwy, and any unploughed arable fields.


The Mosses and Liverworts Of Shropshire

You may wish to purchase a copy of "The Mosses and Liverworts Of Shropshire" by Mark Lawley (2013).

It has 133 pages, illustrated, including

It is available at £19.95 including P&P from Mark Lawley at the address above

Wildlife in the Marches

Mark Lawley's book "Wildlife in the Marches" (2015) contextualises natural history in the wider scope of social history.

The book can be ordered by post from Marches Publications, 12A Castleview Terrace, Ludlow, Shropshire SY8 2NG.

Please make your cheque for £34.50 (which includes £6 P&P) payable to ‘Mark Lawley’.

Herefordshire Botanical Society

You may also be interested in the Herefordshire Botanical Society.