104
TL(52)54 54 ,41 19 .Lt. Walden, roadside north of Stone Bridge. 1972. David Dupree.
(Jermyn, 1974).
TL(52)62 ?????? 19 .Felsted, bank near gardens. 1971. Stanley T Jermyn.
TL(52)72 72.20 19 .Black Notley, in a cornfield belonging to the Hall, called
Westfield, adjoining Leez Lane, plentifully, John Ray [so well
documented that we can allocate a 1 km grid reference.]
(Gibson, 1862).
TL(52)90 91,06 19 .Osea Island, September 1888, Prof. Bulgers Essex Field Club.
Essex Naturalist 2. 251. 1888.
TQ(51)78 78 .85 18 .Benfleet Downs, several hundred plants, August 1996. Stephen
Massey.
.ditto. At least 1,000 plants at base of narrow steep bank, at top of
first large area of grass eastwards from the western end of the
downs, just east of a patch of thorn located approximately half way
along the northern edge of the open area. July 1999. Tim Pyner &
K.J.Adams et BSBI.
Allium schoenoprassum L.
Chives
Essex Status: Garden Escape.
Although Chives is apparently native on thin soils on rocky cliffs in a few sites in Britain, in Essex
it only occurs as a garden escape.
Alopecurus aequalis Sobol.
Essex Status: Native.
Orange Foxtail
An annual to short lived perennial, that only occurs in the southern half of Britain, and is largely
absent from Wales and south-west England. It is found on the mud exposed by the gradual seasonal
drying up of the shallows around ponds, lakes, reservoirs and in gravel workings, and is
particularly abundant in hot dry j'ears. Its British distribution coincides with an area having a July
mean temperature in excess of 16°C and an annual rainfall of less than 750mm, a combination
which probably ensures that the ponds dry up in summer. In wet years it lies dormant as submerged
seed, and may appear to be absent at a given site for several years, only to reappear in abundance
when the waters recede. The hot dry summers of the 1990's have seen an increase in abundance and
it also appears to be colonising fresh sites. Care must be taken not to confuse it with the far
commoner Alopecurus geniculatus (Marsh Foxtail). Both have an almost identical spike of flowers,
maturing from the top down, the anthers of the lower spikelets, often being pale yellow. In A.
aequalis the other anthers are bright orange before dehiscence, whereas in A. geniculatus they are
pale purple/grey-violet. In both species the orange or purple/grey-violet anthers are dull
orange/brown when dehisced, whereas, again in both species, the pale yellow anthers appear
pearly while when empty. Probably the best single character on which to clinch an identification is
the length of the awn on the lemma, which in A. aequalis is only ever shortly (to 0.5mm) emergent
Essex Naturalist (New Series) 16 (1999)