Cornish Biodiversity Network  -  Supporting Wildlife Recording

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Flora of Cornwall (1999)

The descriptive text, below the map, is from the Flora of Cornwall (1999), which was a Tetrad Atlas (the maps had 2km square dots or Tetrads). The map on this web page depicts the plant's distribution at the 1km square scale and shows the records made pre-2000 which were used in the 1999 Flora and those made since.

Ulex europaeus - Gorse



Gorse flowers all year round in Cornwall, although it is often at its best before the tourist season starts, when much of Cornwall is ablaze with its golden-yellow blooms. Once, Gorse was the staple fuel supply of Cornwall and large acreages were kept for harvesting each year. In the wild it is particularly successful on the heathlands and unless growth is checked it will dominate the flora to the detriment of other species. Intermittent natural or 'accidental' fires usually burn off large acreages each year on the drier heaths. Gorse is very common on Scilly.



Click here to see Aphotoflora images by David Fenwick

Source:

French, C.N., Murphy, R.J. & Atkinson, M. 1999. Flora of Cornwall. Wheal Seton Press, Camborne.