Upper Teesdale lies in four counties Cumberland, Westmorland, Durham and the North Riding of Yorkshire.
On Widdybank Fell there are two plants not found anywhere else in Britain. The rock violet or Teesdale violet, Viola rupestris and Sandwort or Minuartia stricta.
On the Yorkshire side of the divide we have many rare plants and flowers. Mickle Fell contains examples of my Alpine favourites the Gentian verna although this photo is from Europe look out for the blue flowers.
On nearby Cronkley Fell is home to mountain forget-me-nots another blue mountain flower – it must be in the Yorkshire water. Perhaps it is more to do with the underlying limestone rock outcrops where Drays octopetala and rock roses Helianthemum canum thrive.
A UK exclusive is Yorkshire Milkwort that is a plant only found on the fell and in Wharfedale.
High Force has a thicket of Juniper and many rare Hawkweeds and botanically interesting Ladies’ Mantles.
Flower Lovers Wild Selection From Teesdale
Treasures of the dale are to be found in the meadows of North Yorkshire.
Look out for the Globe flower Trollius europaeus with its bold yellow flowers.
Dark purple marsh orchids, shrubby Potentillas and mountain Pansies would not look out of place in most gardens.
I will leave the Parsley fern and horse-tails out of my garden but in the wild dale they hold botanic interest.
“Wild Flowers of Yorkshire” by Howard Beck is a guide to the wild flowers most likely to be found in our county together with more details on some of the rarer species.
Credits
Viola rupestris_3 by amadej2008 CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Spring Gentian (Gentiana verna) Frühlings-Enzian by Werner Witte CC BY-NC 2.0
Trollius europaeus by Nick Turland CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 ‘shot in Austria but growing in Yorkshire ed.’