Native Wildflowers

A common blue butterfly on a native birds foot trefoil
Copyright John Kennedy

Like native trees, native wildflowers are those that have not been introduced by animals or people, but have been growing here since the end of the last Ice Age.

Think of all the different wildflowers that you already know. How many native specied do you think we have in Ireland? Over 800! Most of these wildflowers are also found in Britain.

The Lusitanian Flora is a very unique group of wildflowers that are native to Ireland, but are not usually found in Britain. They are mostly found in the south and west of Ireland.

Irish eyebright

The Irish eyebright is a member of the Lusitanian flora group

©Jenny Seawright

Irish eyebright
©Jenny Seawright

Irish eyebright

The Irish eyebright is a member of the Lusitanian flora group

©Jenny Seawright

Enlarge image

This group is a collection of Meditteranean wildflowers that originally came from Northern Spain and Portugal. It is believed that they survived from before the last Ice Age, though there is no definate explanation as to how they came here in the first place.

Have you ever seen an Irish eyebright, Irish spurge, large-flowered butterwort, or St Patricks cabbage? These are some of the wildflowers belonging to the Lusitania Flora group that you might recognise.