PLANT RECORDS FROM LANDGUARD COMMON (1979-1982) A . CoPPING Landguard Common is a triangular area of land at the mouth of the River Stour to the south of Felixstowe (Nat. Grid TM 285315.) It consists of sand and shingle laid down in medieval times which have been colonised slowly by pioneer and successive forms of Vegetation. From the Second World War to the late 1960'sthe area was occupied by the Ministry of Defence, but, shortly a f t e r t h e Ministry withdrew, parts of the common were enclosed. The largest loss was associated with the development of the Freightliner Terminal on the western side, resulting from the expansion of the port of Felixstowe. Conv e n t i o n s in 1978 between the writer and Mr. Mervyn Bell, Chairman of the Suffolk Trust for Nature Conservation (S.T.N.C.), in which further developments at the common were outlined, led to the conducting of the survey here described, beginning in 1979. The prime purpose was to record, within a specified area, the occurrence of all species of flowering plant, and, secondarily, to note their relative abundance and distribution. Area Surveyed Since the survey would be carried out by the writer based in Diss, and mostly working alone, it seemed wise to limit the area of study to that which could be intensively worked in a period of five to six hours per visit. Consequently that part of the common lying N N E of the fence joining 289328 and 290326 was omitted. The remaining principal areas of exclusion were the land owned by the Harwich Harbour Board at the south and west extremities, the grounds of Landguard Fort, the Freightliner Terminal and the Ministry of Defence Property to the north. The southern part of the recording area contained the S.T.N.C. reserve and the small section of beach roped off during the tern breeding season was also excluded. Since the survey began, various developments have prevented or restricted access to three parts of the recording area. Dates and locations are marked on the map. Habitat Summary At first sight much of Landguard appears to be uniform, but close examination reveals a surprising variety of micro-habitats, each with its own distinctive plant Community. The principal diverse areas are identified by capital letters, A , B, C, . . ., on the map, and have the characteristic features described below. A. From 1980, a small spit of open shingle available for pioneer Vegetation. B. Small area disturbed during the construction of the new road to the Harbour Viewing Area and colonised by a few ruderals. C. Close turf formed mainly of Festuca sp., with a few semi-bare dry, stony areas supporting Sedum sp. D. Like B, but larger, and supporting a greater variety o f ' w e e d ' species.
Trans. Suffolk Nat. Soc. 19