2021 County Report for North Wiltshire
Richard Aisbitt and Kat Newsbert
Keeping in touch
Most of our botanical activities happen through the Wiltshire Botanical Society. We cautiously re-started outdoor meetings; these were increasingly well attended.
Dave Green (Emeritus Recorder for VC7) established a WhatsApp group to keep members in touch. This attracted spirited exchanges, often about unusual plants or “what can you spot in this photograph?”.
Training
Four WBS members completed the Identiplant course with local tutors. We hope for more in 2022.
Recording
Filling gaps in Atlas recording, individuals and small groups have added 100 or more taxa to 60 monads over the year, and made smaller additions to many others.
We sent out seasonal lists of “Seven Good Plants”, encouraging members to search for them and record them. The lists gave descriptions, distribution maps, and photos. Our last (just five plants), “Asplenium Wall-ferns in Wiltshire”, is still available at https://irp.cdn-website.com/7dfe45d9/files/uploaded/Five%20Good%20Plants%20Oct%202021.pdf.
Rare Plant Register
Sharon Pilkington published an RPR for Wiltshire in 2007. Since then, recording for the Atlas Update has made some species much less rare and has introduced new rarities, so we need an update. Martin Buckland has taken this on and has it almost ready for publication.
Things move on
Sadly, Sharon Pilkington is retiring as VC7 and VC8 Recorder after almost twenty star-studded years, but I welcome Kat Newbert, who is joining me as a new Co-recorder.
