Strangely yellow Buddleia davidii leaves among stonecrop (possibly Sedum acre) beside the Wharf
I am thoroughly enjoying my lunchtime explorations of a new habitat this year – the Wharf (the old East Bute Dock) next to Cardiff’s County Hall in the Bay. As spring arrives there are so many little wild plants coming to life on the stone and concrete surfaces around the water, making do with whatever nutrients there are in hollows and cracks (or nooks and crannies, if you prefer the cliché). In some ways these little beauties remind me of those found in an alpine habitat.
Buddleia leaves in their more usual colour – I think of Buddleia as wild although it is not native here but a widespread garden escapee of Chinese origin
More stonecrop
If this turns out to be the yellow-flowered Sedum acre I know from the garden walls of my childhood, it is also known as goldmoss stonecrop, mossy stonecrop, biting stonecrop, wallpepper and, outlandishly, as “welcome home husband though never so drunk” (according to Wikipedia).
White-flowered common chickweed (Stellaria media)
I think these red leaves are the start of a Herb Robert plant (Geranium robertianum)
Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
The rosette of leaves hugs the ground…
…as does this spikier rosette….
…of a thistle of some sort, possibly spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)?
A closer look at the spiky leaves
Groundsel (Senecio vulgaris)
Goosegrass or cleavers (Galium aparine) against a bright building-site hoarding…
…and there is still a patch or purple-red goosegrass, as reported last month
Nearby are these frilly leaves I can’t identify
I’m not sure if this is a stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) or a white dead-nettle (Lamium album) – and didn’t touch it to find out
I’m unsure about these leaves – maybe buttercup or something geranium-related?
I think this is hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta)
A closer look at the flowers
A splendid clump of daisies (Bellis perennis) – when it’s not surrounded by grass you can appreciate the lush leaves
A closer look at a daisy flower and unopened bud
This is a mixed bunch of species…
…these red leaves look like some sort of Oxalis or sorrel…
…this is one of the flowers belonging to the red leaves…
…but I think there are two other plants – one with hairy leaves like mouse-ear chickweed (Cerastium) and the other also with small white flowers, on wiry stems
Lesser celandine (Ficaria verna) under some bushes near the Wharf
Then there are the flowerless plants…
Wonderful yellow lichen on a metal post – I think it’s Xanthoria parietina…
…and a closer look at the apothecia or cup-shaped fruiting bodies
I take this lichen for granted, but Wikipedia tells me it’s also known as maritime sunburst lichen and the yellow colour comes from the chemical xanthorin, produced as a defence against ultraviolet radiation. When it grows in the shade xanthorin production stops and the lichen looks greener.
This pale lichen always looks like chewing-gum on the pavement…
…but close up you can see the structure
I think it is quite a good year for mosses…
…a closer look
It will be interesting to see how these little plants survive as the seasons change…
The Squirrelbasket 
Go on, I dare you to touch that nettley thing to find out if it is the stinger or not! 😉
I reckon that buttercup/geranium thing is a geranium of some sort, though I’m not sure which one..
Those red leaves in the 5th photo are certainly the start of Herb Robert, as you say. Check by crushing a bit of leaf – someone I know thinks they smell like burnt rubber, and she has a point!
Last but not least – Happy Easter!
Thanks for all that – and sorry I have taken so long to reply!
The more I see that nettley thing, which is now growing more recognisable, the more I think it is the stinger.
I’ll keep an eye on the geranium and perhaps crush the herb robert when it gets big enough to stand it.
All the best – sorry I missed wishing you a Happy Easter, but have a great Spring 🙂
Very frustrating. Left a comment earlier but it vanished. Leaving a greeting now to see if it will ‘stick’ then will comment properly again tomorrow if it does. Happy Easter!
I have at least got the hang of commenting on YOUR blog now – I have to log off gmail first.
All the best 🙂
Great post. I do love me some plants in hollows and cracks/nooks and crannies.
I’ve been trying to work out what the frilly leaved plant is as I have some seedlings of it on my patio. I’ve settled on Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea) but am happy to be told otherwise! You wouldn’t be able to tell from looking at a flowering plant but if you look up pictures of the rosette stage it makes more sense.
Could the geranium-thing be Geranium molle? Again a bit of a guess. On a slight tangent, I wonder if ‘molle’ is similar in meaning to ‘mollis’ (as in Alchemilla mollis). I think there’s a superficial resemblance; apparently ‘mollis’ refers to the softness of the leaves.
I’ve been enjoying the tree posts as well, hopefully this warmer weather will spur it into action!
Thanks for all that. I am still pondering those mystery plants but took some more pictures this last week – I will see if those look like the species you mention.
Ragwort is so common here that I think you are probably right about the rosette of leaves – I usually don’t spot it until the yellow flowers come out.
I would guess from my Latin O-level a long time ago that molle and mollis both mean soft but one is the Latin feminine to go with Alchemilla and the other neuter to go with Geranium?
All the best 🙂