AREAS of land within the Bradford district are playing a vital role in the future of wild flowers across the country.

Rough pastures between Queensbury and Thornton, land around the River Wharfe at Otley and a swathe of Ilkley Moor are among hundreds of kilometres of land across the UK being monitored as part of a unique, far-reaching survey, the results of which will inform Government policy on land management and conservation.

Now work is beginning to map out populations of wild plants and their habitats, to provide evidence of which widespread plants are increasing or declining. It will also indicate the changing state of our most valued habitats such as grassland, fenland, salt marsh and even road verges.

The National Plant Monitoring Scheme will for the first time enable scientists to carry out an annual stock take of wild plants and their habitats.

“We have a good understanding of changes in populations of birds, butterflies and bats but never before had a scheme like this for plants,” says Dr Kevin Walker, head of science with the Bristol-based Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI), one of the partners responsible for the scheme.

“This will allow us to find out what is happening to our biodiversity in general. We will be able to see which species are increasing or declining due to man’s impact on the environment. It will allow us to quantify what changes are taking place and why.”

Like animals, plants require specific environmental conditions such as the right temperature, moisture and light levels in order to thrive. Even small changes can affect the reproduction and survival of a species.

Many counties in the UK are losing a species every two years. “From as far back as records go, to the 16th century, we have lost around 25 species so far,” says Kevin. He cites an example of the now rare Pasque flower which was almost eradicated in West Yorkshire during the industrial revolution. Today, only one plant survives in the county on a site near Ferrybridge.

Crucial to the scheme is the recruitment of 2,000 volunteers, who will play a vital role in information gathering, by carrying out surveys in important habitats. All those signing up - who should be able to identify common wild flowers - will receive free training, guidance and support.

Focusing on 1km-square plots of land, investigations will look at links with birds, insects and pollinators. Explains North Yorkshire-based Kevin: “It is looking at areas such as climate change. We have very good evidence that some groups are responding to climate change and increasing their ranges while others are declining. Some can move to different habitats - they tend to move centimetres rather than kilometres.

“Changes are often very slow and hard to detect but this sort of study returns to places year after year and will pick up subtle changes, and after ten years you can see plants becoming more or less abundant particularly on south-facing slopes.”

Plots in the Yorkshire Dales include an area near Grassington and in the hills close to Gargrave.

Along with the BSBI, the scheme is being supported by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Wiltshire-based Plantlife - an organisation dedicated to saving wild plants - and the Government public advisory body the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC).

Initially funded by the JNCC plots, plots have been randomly selected in areas with more biodiverse habitats.

“Ilkley Moor, for example, would have different types of heather and wetter areas may have plants such as sundew, wild flowers, grasses, ferns and some sedges such as cotton grass,” says Kevin. “Woodlands would probably have plants including bluebells, wood anemone, red campion and ferns.”

Hayley New, from Plantlife, says: “This will give us a clear picture of where plants are still to be found. Some areas of the country are under-recorded or plants have disappeared. This will help us pick up on local changes. The first year will give us a snapshot and after three years or so we should see national trends emerging.”

She adds: “For volunteers the survey provides a great excuse to go outside and take a look at what is growing in their local area.”

As the number of volunteers grows, further areas of land can be allocated. Chris Cheffings, from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, says: “Currently, information on plant species’ abundance and change is very limited and it is difficult to gauge the condition of habitats outside protected sites. The survey will fill this significant gap in UK biodiversity surveillance.”

*For more information on the NPMS and how to take part please visit npms.org.uk