Gentians in August

Late July to early September is the time to see gentians, one of the rarest, the Marsh Gentian, can be seen in Hampshire in a few locations, most famously the New Forest but also Bartley Heath in North Hampshire. Marsh Gentians can be hard to find as their flowering can be sporadic but if you look in wet heathlands amongst the Ling you might be lucky. This weekend I searched for them at Bartley Heath and was rewarded with a fantastic display!

The Marsh Gentian is 10-15 cm tall, it is upright and the flower is a bright blue colour.

Marsh Gentian

Welcome to my Wildlife Blog

I've named my blog Traveller's Joy for a couple of reasons, firstly because it describes the purpose of my blog, a narration of travelling with the intention of finding, witnessing and enjoying the best wildlife in my home county, Hampshire and secondly because I simply love hedgerow plants!

I hope you'll find my travels interesting and if you have any suggestions about places to visit and wildlife to spot, i'd love to hear from you. I'm seeking out local wildlife but all species and habitats are of interest and luckily for me, a great variety can be found right here in Hampshire. My aim is to find and see the best local wildlife in every month, for a year, starting now!