The colour of spring
The UEA campus comes alive with the colour of spring in the form of bright yellow daffodils as the weather starts to warm. The wild daffodil grows to 30cm in height and flowers from March to April (The Wildlife Trusts) but the blooms on display at UEA are most likely to be garden varieties. Nevertheless, they are a welcome sight amongst the imposing grey concrete and dull green grass.
The wild daffodil, Narcissus pseudonarcissus, has now become rarer than it used to be but can still be seen in the dappled shade of undisturbed woodlands (The Wildlife Trusts). The leaves are a greyish green in colour and the flowers, although lighter then garden varieties, are a striking yellow. Due to the intensification of agriculture true wild daffodils, as opposed to hybrids or garden varieties, are rather rare and found scattered mainly in the west of Britain (Plantlife).
The daffodil is the national symbol of Wales as well as being the flower of the county of Gloucestershire (Plantlife).
References
Plantlife https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/daffodil-wild (last accessed April 2020)
The Wildlife Trusts https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/wildflowers/wild-daffodil (last accessed April 2020)
