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We've had several days of warm and toasty weather, temperatures up near 20 degrees, so I've been out plant hunting. Out in the wilds the rich honey scent of sweet allysum, Lobularia maritima, fills the air, great pillowy mounds of it all over the hillsides. This has been flowering since November and shows no sign of stopping anytime soon.
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This, I think, is Oxalis pes-caprae, part of the wood sorrel family, variously known as Bermuda buttercup, African wood sorrel and others. It's indigenous to South Africa and was brought to the Maltese Islands in the 1800's where, as in many other parts of the world, it's considered an invasive weed. It's full of oxalic acid and does sheep no good whatsoever when they graze on it.
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Still, not so many sheep in these parts and the bees are more than happy with it. Bees in January!
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Always a delight to discover red campion, Silene dioica, I'm glad to find this here.
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Not a wildflower, for sure, it's in Mr B's garden and I only include it for the astonishing burst of garish extravagance that it is. Some kind of hibiscus hybrid, very pleased with itself.
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Speaking of extravagance, a species of aloe (Aloe arborescens possibly, credit to Shirley Boyle for the identification, I had no clue) draped luxuriantly over a garden wall in Fontana.
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And a fig tree, Ficus carica, growing out of the guttering of this crumbling house. I feel the tree may outlast the building.