London: Hampton Court to Teddington

9 September 2014

From Hampton Court railway station we crossed the Thames, the bridge having Bilbao's Fleabane Conyza floribunda growing on it.  Entering Hampton Court itself we walked past the house to the grassland and flower-beds to the NE.  Meadow saffron Colchicum autumnale was naturalised in part of this area.  A row of Large-leaved Limes Tilia platyphyllos had abundant Mistletoe Viscum album, which could also be found, more unusually, on a Field Maple Acer campestre and a Rowan Sorbus aucuparia. 

Mistletoe on rowan

An artificial canal beyond these, marking the boundary of the grounds of the house, had both Fat and Greater Duckweeds Lemna gibba and Spirodela polyrhiza, and also provided opportunities for a grey heron. 

Grey heron, Hampton Court

To the south of the lime-trees were rows of old Yews Taxus baccata cut into curious conical shapes. 

Conical yews, Hampton Court

Flower-beds closer to the house, while well weeded, still supported a number of wild annuals, such as Henbit Lamium amplexicaule, Many-seeded Goosefoot Chenopodium polyspermum and Guernsey Fleabane Conyza sumatrensis, as well as escaped French Marigolds Tagetes patula. 

Many-seeded goosefoot

To the south of the house was the more formal Privy Garden, even more thoroughly weeded, but walls of the balustrade above hosted Wall-rue Asplenium ruta-muraria, Ivy-leaved Toadflax Cymbalaria muralis and Procumbent Yellow-sorrel Oxalis corniculata.

The Italianate Privy Garden, Hampden Court

We then crossed the road to the north of Hampden House and entered Bushy Park, a large park with both Fallow and Red Deer. 

Red deer stags, Bushy Park

At the entrance gate was Gallant Soldier Galinsoga parviflora.  Large trees here included scattered ancient Pedunculate Oaks Quercus robur, Limes Tilia x europaea with more Mistletoe (the fourth host), and Horse-chestnuts Aesculus hippocastanum. 

Veteran oak, Bushy Park

The Longford River had Gypsywort Lycopus europaeus and more Fat Duckweed. 

  

Fat duckweed

We walked on through more grassland to the SE entrance to the Woodland Garden, which runs either side of another branch of the Longford River. 

River through the Woodland Garden

There were several interesting planted species.  These included Swamp Cypress along the riverside itself, their aerial roots forming palisades; the tallest Montpellier Maple Acer monspessulanum in Britain; several large old London planes Platanus x hispanica, one of which we measured at 6.24m girth; Big-cone Pines Pinus coulteri just south of Duck Bridge half-way along the river; and shrubs like Chinese Bramble Rubus tricolor, Gloryflower Clerodendron bungei and Beautyberry Callicarpa bodinieri var. giraldii. 

Swamp cypress with aerial roots

Swamp cypress foliage and fruit

  

Montpellier maple just overtopping the cedar behind

 

Montpellier maple leaves and fruit

Old London plane

Grove of big-cone pines

Beautyberry

Gloryflower

By Duck Bridge was Tall Tutsan Hypericum x inodorum (almost entirely in seed), some leaves mined by the moth Ectoedemia septembrella, Hemp Agrimony Eupatoria cannabinum, Water Mint Mentha aquatica, Gypsywort, and Orange and Indian Balsams Impatiens capensis & glandulifera.  In the shade of trees along the riverside walk was some Three-nerved Sandwort Moehringia trinervia.  Notable fungi were Parasol Mushroom Macrolepiota procera and Golden Scalycap Pholiota aurivella. 

Parasol mushroom spreading its white spores on the grass

Golden scalycap

A café in the gardens gave us a chance of refreshments before we left at the east end and walked north up Chestnut Avenue between the Limes and Horse-chestnuts, with deer much in evidence.

Fallow does, one melanic, Chestnut Avenue

At the exit on Sandy Lane we went left and then north again up Park Road to the centre of Teddington.  Along here we recorded Annual Mercury Mercurialis annua, Green Alkanet Pentaglottis sempervivum and Buddleia Buddleja davidii.  In Teddington we turned east along the High Street to Ferry Road and a slipway into the Thames, where there lots of marsh plants, although it was damper than usual because a high spring tide, coinciding with our visit, brought the water-level far up the bank and even stranded one fisherman from his rod and nets.  Flowers here included Orange and Indian Balsams, Water Mint, Gypsywort, Purple Loosestrife Lythrum salicaria, Black Horehound Ballota nigra, Brooklime Veronica beccabunga, Water Chickweed Myosoton aquaticum, Shaggy Soldier Galinsoga quadriradiata, Hedgerow Cranesbill Geranium pyrenaicum, Redleg Persicaria maculosa and a Water-pepper that appeared to be a hybrid P. x hybrida between the Common P. hydropiper and Tasteless P. mitis, which has been reported before from Surrey.

Redleg among water-pepper (perhaps Persicaria x hybridum)

Thames at Teddington Lock

From here a bridge took us over to a narrow island in the Thames (Creweyte or Swan Ait), which had been colonised by Chinese Bramble and Snowberry Symphoricarpos albus, but also had Bladder-senna Colutea arborescens, Tansy Tanacetum vulgare, and Hoary Mustard Hirschfeldia incana. 

Distinctive waisted seed-pods of hoary mustard

Although Chinese Mugwort is recorded from this island, we could only find the common Mugwort Artemisia vulgaris.  There were some conspicuous moth leaf-mines here - Chrysoethsia sexguttella on Spear-leaved Orache Atriplex prostrata, the very common Phyllonorycter coryli on hazel, and Coptotriche marginea on bramble.

Chrysoethsia sexguttella mines on spear-leaved orache

Coptotriche marginea mine on bramble

The bridge continued to the towpath south along the east bank of the Thames.  There was more Hoary Mustard along here, but most striking was the series of fruiting trees along the side of the path away from the river - both apple Malus pumila and pear Pyrus communis.  The latter had the prominent orange galls caused by European pear rust Gymnosporangium sabinae. 

European pear rust galls

Among them were Evergreen Oak Quercus ilex (with leaf-mines of the moth Bucculatrix ulmella) and Turkey Oak Quercus cerris. 

Bucculatrix ulmella mines on evergreen oak

On the bank of the river several Berlin Poplars Populus x berolinensis, with sticky balsam-scented shoots, had been planted.  The fruit theme was continued in Dewberry Rubus caesius and Hop Humulus lupulus, quite common alongside London waterways and the Thames.

Hops

Sweetbriar Rosa rubiginosa had finished flowering, but Tall Tutsan here were still in flower.

Tall tutsan

Other plants by the river were Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata, Beggarticks Bidens frondosa, Confused Michaelmas-daisy Aster novi-belgii, Water Dock Rumex hydrolapathum, Water Figwort Scrophularia aquatica, Wild Angelica Angelica sylvestris and a few Garden Angelica A. archangelica. 

Beggarticks

By the path were also Pampas-grass Cortaderia selloana, Round-leaved Cranesbill Geranium rotundifolium, Vervain Verbena officinalis, Pellitory-by-the-wall Parietaria judaica and Common Polypody Polypodium vulgare.  At the side of the water where there was a shallow shelf, the shells of the water-snail Common Bithynia Bithynia tentaculata were frequent.

Common bithynia

On reaching Kingston Bridge we re-crossed the Thames and returned via Broom Road to Teddington High Street, where we ate at the friendly Retro Bistrot.