2020 County Report for Monmouthshire

Stephanie J Tyler and Elsa Wood

We entered far fewer records onto Mapmate in 2020 because of limited fieldwork and the end of the incentive given by Atlas 2020. Nonetheless, we entered almost 2,500 records and many other recors were generated by other botanists, notably by Sam Bosanquet, and by Barry Stewart and Matt Picken who carried out a detailed survey along the seawall and visited Llanwern Steelworks.

Individuals and groups if up to four botanists continued doing survey work through the year and there were many exciting new hectad records which will be described in the Welsh Bulletin and in BSBI News and so only two are included here.

The Rare Plant Register published online in early 2020 is being revised again because of recent finds.

Monmouthshire Botany Group held no meetings in 2021 because of Covid but members were able to take part in the New Year Plant Hunt, held in January in Caerleon.

Trichomanes speciosum (Killarney Fern)

gametophytes found by Sam Bosanquet among and in crevices in wet rocks on several tiny streams near Penallt and in the Whitebrook valley in SO50

Epipactis palustris (Marsh Helleborine)

new colony of about 200 Marsh Helleborines found by Lee Gregory at Garn Lakes in the extreme north-west of the vice-county (SO21),