Eager Wokingham residents have declared war on an alien species this spring.
The so‑called Friends of Town Lane are battling invasive Spanish bluebells at ancient woodland on the edge of Bulmershe Park, led by Shirley Boyt. The group has permission to remove the non‑native plants to give English bluebells a better chance.
Spanish bluebells were originally imported into the UK as bulbs and have stronger genes than the native plants. Pollinators often land first on the Spanish bluebells, then on the English ones, and they hybridise the invasive bluebell: hyacinthoides hispanica with the native variety hyacinthoides non-scripta. When they cross‑pollinate, the Spanish DNA tends to dominate, threatening the future of the English bluebell.
Ms Boyt said: “You can see this is quite a sizeable bluebell wood. In about a month these will burst forth and there will be a carpet of blue.
“The ecosystem here is unique. There’s all sorts of species here that don’t exist anywhere else.
“We’re creating a firebreak between the Spanish invaders and the natural bluebell wood.
“You often have to fight a losing battle, but that doesn’t mean you can stop. All of these will have to go.
Ms Boyt has strong support from the council. Cllr Katrin Harding, executive member for environment and climate emergency, who has invasive bluebells in her own garden, said: “English bluebells are an important part of our woodland heritage and with around half of the world’s population here in the UK, we have a real responsibility to protect them.
“Spanish bluebells can spread quickly and can hybridise with our native species, so removing them from ancient woodland helps safeguard the distinctive bluebells people know and value.
“Anyone carrying out this work must be sure they can tell the species apart and should always have permission from the landowner.
“It’s also a good reminder for all of us to choose native plants in our gardens, especially near woodland, as this is better for both our bluebells and local wildlife.”
Ted O'Neill, Local Democracy Reporter
