On Friday 23rd June 2006, Rachel O'Hara from Surrey Wildlife Trust and John Arnott from Merrist Wood College, carried out a visual inspection of the hay meadow. The variety of plants was considered to be good, with thirty-one species recorded. The proportion of flowers to grasses was high, being as great as 60% flowers in a considerable portion of the area. The species indicated a damp meadow in the central area next to the housing estate with dry meadow elsewhere.
The list of species is given below with a subjective measure of relative abundance:
Frequent = widespread throughout the area |
Occasional = encountered in smaller numbers |
Rare = only one or two individual plants found |
Creeping bent | Frequent (locally) |
Meadow foxtail | Occasional |
Sweet vernal-grass | Frequent |
False oatgrass | Frequent |
Cocksfoot | Frequent (locally) |
Red fescue | Frequent |
Yorkshire-fog | Frequent |
Creeping soft-grass | Frequent (locally) |
Rough meadow-grass | Frequent |
Hairy sedge | Rare |
Common knapweed | Frequent |
Cat's-ear | Rare |
Sharp-flowered rush | Frequent (locally) |
Compact rush | Occasional |
Soft rush | Rare |
Meadow vetchling | Frequent |
Common Bird's-foot-trefoil | Occasional |
Greater bird's-foot-trefoil | Frequent |
Field woodrush | Rare |
Ribwort plantain | Occasional |
Meadow buttercup | Occasional |
Creeping buttercup | Occasional |
Common sorrel | Frequent |
Common ragwort | Rare |
Lesser stitchwort | Frequent |
Red clover | Rare |
White clover | Frequent (locally) |
Tufted vetch | Frequent (locally) |
Hedge bindweed | Frequent |
Pedunculate oak seedlings | Occasional |
Aspen suckers | Frequent |