Oat-grass (Arrhenatherum elatius), Parsnip (Pastinaca sativa). Barren Brome (Anisanthus sterilis),
Soft Brome (Bromus mollis) and Wall Barley (Hordeum murinum). Crow Garlic (Allium vineale)
found along the Centre Road, Wanstead Flats verges has a very strong population here. Grey Sedge
(Carex divulsa) is another plant that seems to turn up on verges and not elsewhere.
Perhaps the most interesting of the roadside verge plants is the Buckshorn Plantain (Plantago
coronopus), essentially a sub-maritime plant in Essex. Buckshorn Plaintain is found on Wanstead and
Leyton Flats, but is abundant on the verge and central reservation of the Whipps Cross Road. Curiously
it has been known in the Forest for over two hundred years. Richard Warner recorded is thus 'On dry
gravelly land. Found in open parts of the Forest, by the roadside: not very common'. It may well be
one plant that has benefited from the increased use of salt on roads in winter. A list of plants from the
Bury Road verges is given in Table 9.
Disturbed Ground
Disturbed ground has occurred in the Forest for a variety of reasons. In the 19th century enclosures
that were made and the ground brought into cultivation must have initially been a very good habitat
for the weeds of disturbed ground. Such enclosures are no longer permissible, but disturbed ground
still appears every so often in the Forest. In the last few years road construction and associated projects
have left much disturbed ground. Examples are the embankment adjacent to the North Circular Road
south of Walthamstow Forest and the cut and cover tunnel over Bell Common, near Epping. Another
source of disturbed ground has been the laying of pipelines in the Forest. In recent years gas mains
or water mains have been laid on the verges of the Wake Road, from Goldings Hill to the Wake Arms
roundabout and across Leyton Flats, leaving much disturbed ground in their wake. The drought years
have also left their mark on the Forest's waste site flora. Much of Lords Bushes was cleared of its
dead and dying trees, leaving a large area of disturbed ground which was readily colonised by
numerous weed species exploiting the nutrients released by burning. Many much smaller sites are
also to be found - places where rubbish or rubble has been dumped, old bonfire sites, sites where
vehicle tyres have disturbed the surface or where, for one reason or another, it has been necessary to
dig the ground. A list of disturbed ground plants is given in Table 10.
Introduced Plants
Due to the close proximity of urban gardens to many parts of the southern Forest, there is an
ever-increasing number of alien plants recorded in the Forest. Casual introductions into ponds account
for a few of these species. No introduction, however well-intentioned, can be condoned. The problems
that can arise with species such as Japanese Knotweed (Reynouhia japonica) or the Aquatic Stonecrop
(Crassula helmsii) could have disastrous effects on the native flora. A list of recently collected records
of introduced plants is given in Table 11.
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