__NOTOC__ Fallowlees Flush is the name given to a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI) in mid-

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, England. The steeply sloping site has calcium-rich springs supporting vegetation rare in the county.

Location and natural features

Fallowlees Flush is situated in the

north-east of England The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A ''compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each ...

in the county of

, to the west of Fontburn Reservoir and the east of Harwood Forest, west-north-west of Netherwitton and east-south-east of Forestburn Gate. The site is situated on a north-east facing slope descending from to , above sea level above a stream feeding the reservoir.

Flora

Flora on the site grades from species rich areas fed by lime-rich springs, through to a wooded fringe by the stream. The SSSI citation sets out four distinct groups of vegetation. Moss-donimated turf dominates areas where springs arise, and are characterised by stonewort (''

Charales Charales is an order of freshwater green algae in the division Charophyta, class Charophyceae, commonly known as stoneworts. Depending on the treatment of the genus '' Nitellopsis'', living (extant) species are placed into either one family ( ...

''), flea-sedge (''

Carex pulicaris ''Carex'' is a vast genus of over 2,000 species of grass-like plants in the family Cyperaceae, commonly known as sedges (or seg, in older books). Other members of the family Cyperaceae are also called sedges, however those of genus ''Carex'' may ...

''), tawny sedge ('' Carex hostiana''), long-stalked yellow-sedge ('' Carex lepidocarpa'') and broad-leaved cottongrass (''

Eriophorum latifolium ''Eriophorum latifolium'', commonly known as broad-leaved bog-cotton and broad leaved cotton grass ...

''). A wider area is influenced by the springs, and in addition to the sedges and cottongrass, supports dioecious sedge ('' Carex dioica''), marsh lousewort ('' Pedicularis palustris''), creeping willow (''

Salix repens ''Salix repens'', the creeping willow, is a small, shrubby species of willow in the family Salicaceae, growing up to 1.5metres in height. Found amongst sand dunes and heathlands, it is a polymorphic species, with a wide range of variants. In t ...

''), devil's-bit scabious (''

Succisa pratensis ''Succisa pratensis'', also known as devil's-bit or devil's-bit scabious, is a flowering plant in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae. It differs from other similar species in that it has four-lobed flowers, whereas '' Scabiosa columbaria'' ( ...

''), purple moor-grass (''

Molinia caerulea ''Molinia caerulea'', known by the common name purple moor-grass, is a species of grass that is native to Europe, west Asia, and north Africa. It grows in locations from the lowlands up to in the Alps. Like most grasses, it grows best in acid s ...

''), marsh cinquefoil (''

Potentilla palustris ''Comarum palustre'' ( syn. ''Potentilla palustris''), known by the common name marsh cinquefoil,Streeter D, Hart-Davies C, Hardcastle A, Cole F, Harper L. 2009. ''Collins Flower Guide''. Harper Collins also purple marshlocks and swamp cinquefoi ...

''), meadowsweet (''

Filipendula ulmaria ''Filipendula ulmaria'', commonly known as meadowsweet or mead wort, is a perennial herbaceous plant in the family Rosaceae that grows in damp meadows. It is native throughout most of Europe and Western Asia (Near East and Middle East). It has ...

''), jointed rush (''

Juncus articulatus ''Juncus articulatus'' is a flowering plant species in the rush family Juncaceae. It is known by the common name jointleaf rush or jointed rush, which can also refer to '' J. kraussii'' from Australia. It is native to Eurasia, Canada, Greenland ...

'') as well as common butterwort (''

Pinguicula vulgaris ''Pinguicula'', commonly known as butterworts, is a genus of carnivorous flowering plants in the family Lentibulariaceae. They use sticky, glandular leaves to lure, trap, and digest insects in order to supplement the poor mineral nutrition they ...

''), grass-of-Parnassus (''

Parnassia palustris ''Parnassia palustris'', the marsh grass of Parnassus, northern grass-of-Parnassus, or just grass-of-Parnassus, and bog star, is a flowering plant in the staff-vine family Celastraceae. It is the county flower of Cumberland in England, and appea ...

''), marsh valerian (''

Valeriana dioica ''Valeriana dioica'', the marsh valerian, is a species of flowering plant in the family Caprifoliaceae, native to North America, Europe and Anatolia. It is typically found in calcareous fens. It is a dioecious species, with male and female flower ...

''), and early marsh-orchid (''

Dactylorhiza incarnata ''Dactylorhiza incarnata'', the early marsh-orchid, is a perennial, temperate-climate species of orchid generally found growing in wet meadows, and generally on base-rich soils, up to about 2100m asl. The species occurs widely in Europe and Asia ...

''). More acidic areas of the site support water plants such as oval sedge ('' Carex leporina'') and star sedge (''

Carex echinata ''Carex echinata'' is a species of sedge known by the common names star sedge and little prickly sedge. Description ''Carex echinata'' is a tussock-forming, grasslike plant in the family Cyperaceae. It has a solid, ridged stem that may exceed i ...

''), as well as greater amounts of jointed rush. Woodland areas by the stream are composed of alder (''

Alnus glutinosa ''Alnus glutinosa'', the common alder, black alder, European alder, European black alder, or just alder, is a species of tree in the family (biology), family Betulaceae, native plant, native to most of Europe, southwest Asia and northern Africa. ...

''), downy birch (''

Betula pubescens ''Betula pubescens'' (syn. ''Betula alba''), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia ...

'') and hazel (''

Corylus avellana ''Corylus avellana'', the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch tree, birch family Betulaceae. The shrubs usually grow tall. The nut is round, in contrast to the longer Corylus maxima, filbert nut. Common hazel is native to E ...

''). Ground flora in the woodland area includes tufted hair-grass (''

Deschampsia cespitosa ''Deschampsia'' is a genus of plants in the grass family Poaceae, commonly known as hair grass or tussock grass. The genus is widespread across many countries.Geum rivale ''Geum rivale'', the water avens, is a flowering plant in the genus ''Geum'' within the family Rosaceae. Other names of the plant are nodding avens, drooping avens, cure-all, water flower and Indian chocolate. It is native to the temperate region ...

''), wood crane’s-bill (''

Geranium sylvaticum ''Geranium sylvaticum'', the wood cranesbill or woodland geranium, is a species of hardy flowering plant in the family Geraniaceae, native to Europe and northern Turkey. The Latin specific epithet ''sylvaticum'' means "of woodland", referring ...

'') and a substantial stand of lesser pond-sedge (''

Carex acutiformis ''Carex acutiformis'', the lesser pond-sedge, is a species of plant in the ''Carex'', or sedge family. Description Carex acutiformis is a tuft-forming, rhizomatous plant growing up to tall. Stems are slender and three angled. Leaves are narrow, ...

''). The condition of Fallowlees Flush was judged to be favourable in 2011, with some concerns about bracken encroachment noted.

Notes

References

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External links

Natural England
SSSI record for Fallowlees Flush Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Northumberland Sites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1990

Location and natural features

Flora

See also

Notes

References

External links