Keep on Growing

The Station at Midsomer Norton may not be open for events but the gardens keep on growing. Volunteers have been keeping an eye on things for security reasons and have sent us some photos of the wild flowers.

The Somerset and Dorset Railway station at Midsomer Norton was famous for its gardens and especially the greenhouse where they grew plants for sale at other stations along the line. These days the station has won awards not just for cultivated flowers but also the encouragement of wild flowers both on the site and along the line.

The wild flower meadow between the Museum and the Pill box is carefully managed without mowing for the first half of the year and is a picture of many different grasses, Plantains, Buttercups, Vetches, Clovers and others. In May and June we are lucky enough to see wild Orchids here and along the lineside where it has been cleared.

Encouraging wild flowers is not just a matter of leaving things to grow but is down to careful management. The Volunteers love to show off their gardens and wild flowers and are looking forward to the station being open to visitors again when it is safe.

The photos show Ground Ivy, Plantain and Clovers starting to flower in the meadow, English Bluebells on the bank and an Orchid from last year.