A month by month guide to the vivid swathes of colour that cover the roadside hedges or catch the eye along the footpaths of St Agnes.

Click on the month name for a description and illustrations.

March: A cold spell at this time used to be known as a ‘Blackthorn Winter’.

April: For sheer coverage the most prominent displays are those of Gorse and Blackthorn.

May: Thrift, Bluebells and Hawthorn blossom are everywhere to be seen. 

June: The cliffs turn purple as the heather opens.

July: Plants like the furry-leaved mullein, the tall pink spikes of rosebay willow herb and the big white bells of trailing convolvulus, signal high summer.

August: This is the month when two of the nightshades are at their best in uncut lanes.

September: on a sunny day the flowers are covered with flies, bees and butterflies such as red admirals.

Winter: It has been a particularly good year for berries

Caution: The reader will, of course, make allowances for seasonal variation and not be too surprised to find in March what has been described for April.