'Beggar's Ticks Dodder'

Dodders are parasitic plants. They don't have roots nor leaves, and their thin stems garland around their host plants. And they suck the saps of those. Let's call this one 'Beggar's Ticks Dodder' (Cuscuta scandens) because it often seems to grow on Beggar's Ticks (Bidens frondosa).

It is considered as an invasive plant, like the plant it has chosen to grow on here, for that matter. The Japanese Knotweed (Reynoutria japonica), with its big leaves is a serious pest in many parts of France.'Beggar's Ticks Dodder' is still quite uncommon in Perigord, but its numbers are increasing. It grows in some places on the Dordogne banks, and the river helps it to go elsewhere.

Many little white flowers will give many round seeds.

St Bernard Lily

A white cloud under the Pine trees...

Thousands of little white flowers open now. The St Bernards Lily (Anthericum ramosum) is in full bloom. They are not always so many, quite often you find only a few plants together.

It is a bulbous plant, with thin stems, grassy leaves and delicate flowers.

It is not really a Lily but looks much like it. At least, it has a bulb and six petals and parallel-nerved leaves.

'Truncate Selfheal'

There are not that many flowers in chestnut woods, but sometimes there are.  Here, among the green leaves of very young trees a Selfheal. It has no English name, so let us call it 'Truncate Selfheal' (Prunella hastifolia).

It is difficult to see in the image, but in fact it has truncate leaves.

However, the big blue flowers do like some sunshine. This one grows in an open space between the trees.

Broadleaf Helleborine

You easily miss it. Even if it is a rather big plant, until 80 cm high. Broadleaf Helleborine (Epipactis helleborine) blends well into its environment, it grows in the shade of trees and has rather inconspicuous colours.

But it is a beauty, when you look from nearby!

Every plant is different, even if the flowers are always some shade of green, red and purple with a touch of yellow.


It flowers from the second half of June to well into July. This year it will not go on flowering for long, it is too hot and too dry.