Plants of the Ouse Burn Way: The Lower Ouseburn

Explore the plant life of the Ouse Burn Way in a new series by Ouse Burn Naturalist, James Common. This week, we’ll explore the Lower Ouseburn Valley.

Stretching from the River Tyne at Ouseburn to Weetslade Country Park and the Letch in Longbenton, the Ouse Burn Way is a green corridor supporting an impressive variety of habitats and an equally diverse flora. While many of its plants are familiar native species, others are rather more surprising.

Having spent many hours recording plants along the burn, this new blog series celebrates the species and places that make this wildlife corridor so special. As we work our way north, we’ll explore some of its key sites, highlighting the plants and habitats that make each one well worth a visit for anyone interested in wildflowers, trees, ferns and other botanical treasures.

If you spot any of the species featured, please consider submitting your records to iRecord. Every observation helps build a clearer picture of their distribution and contributes to our understanding of the Ouse Burn’s remarkable wildlife.

The Lower Ouseburn Valley

Despite appearances, the Lower Ouseburn is a diverse place for wild plants. Stretching from the River Tyne northward to City Stadium, it is a largely built-up landscape, rich in history, and home to a surprising array of plants. Arguably, the least ‘natural’ of any area along the burn, its impressive diversity therefore stems not from native species, many of which were lost long ago, but from the impressive variety of successful colonists that have appeared in the valley over years of industry and human activity.

Globetrotters

Some of the most familiar and eye-catching plants of the Ouseburn Valley owe their presence to human activity, whether intentional or accidental. As a former centre of industry, trade and transport, the valley received a constant influx of goods from around the world. Along with them came countless seeds, arriving as contaminants of grain, hidden amongst wool, or simply hitching a ride with imported materials.

One particularly conspicuous example is Eastern Rocket, now a common sight in pavement cracks and neglected corners. Native to Asia, it was first recorded in Newcastle in 1936 and is thought to have arrived as a contaminant of imported grain. Another member of the cabbage family, Perennial Wall-rocket, is larger but similarly associated with ports and industrial areas, where it has become firmly established.

Perhaps the most famous botanical traveller is Oxford Ragwort. Native to the slopes of Mount Etna in Sicily, this hybrid species escaped from the Oxford Botanic Garden in 1794 and spread rapidly across Britain as the railway network expanded. Today it is ubiquitous throughout the Ouseburn Valley and can be found growing in almost any gritty, neglected corner.

Another relative, Narrow-leaved Ragwort, arrived much more recently. Initially introduced to British ports in imported wool shoddy, it has since spread widely across the country. It was first recorded in Newcastle in 2012, appropriately enough at nearby Byker Bank.

Did you know?

Around 295 plant species have been recorded from the 1 km square containing the Ouseburn Valley, making it the fourth most botanically diverse area along the Ouse Burn and fifth in Newcastle. Scratch the surface, however, and much of this diversity comes from non-native species, setting it apart from more overwhelmingly natural sites such as Gosforth Nature Reserve. Nevertheless, this rich mix of plants is fascinating in its own right.

Archaeophytes

Sticking with the theme of botanical arrivals, another fascinating group of plants found throughout the Ouseburn are the archaeophytes. These are non-native species introduced with people before AD 1500 that have since become firmly established in the British landscape. In fact, many of our most familiar wildflowers fall into this category, including Common Poppy, Red Dead-nettle and even the ubiquitous Ground-elder.

Many archaeophytes are adapted to disturbed ground, having evolved alongside agriculture over thousands of years. As a result, they have readily taken to the valley’s pavements, roadsides, railway edges and former industrial land, where freshly disturbed soils provide ideal conditions.

One of the more notable examples is Cut-leaved Dead-nettle, a plant that closely resembles the much more common Red Dead-nettle but is listed on the Rare Plant Register for Northumberland. Good places to look include the area around Spillers, as well as flowerbeds near City Stadium and the Biscuit Factory.

Another interesting archaeophyte is Black Horehound, a species associated with human settlements since at least the Iron Age. It grows abundantly around Ouseburn Farm and is well worth stopping to sniff if you’re passing. Fair warning, though: its rather pungent aroma tends to divide opinion!

Several other archaeophytes are also well represented throughout the valley. Keep an eye out for Tall Melilot, Wall Barley and Small Nettle, and take a moment to appreciate the long history these plants have shared with people. They may not be native, but after centuries alongside us, they’ve become an enduring part of the area’s botanical character.

A Taste of the Coast

Saltmarsh is now a rare habitat on Tyneside, having been largely lost as the Tyne and its tributaries were developed over past centuries. The Ouseburn Valley is no exception. Even so, it may come as a surprise to learn that many of the plants typically associated with saltmarsh can still be found here today, clinging to stonework and gabions wherever the tidal waters reach inland.

Among the more recognisable species is Sea Aster, which produces a fine display of mauve flowers in late summer downstream of Panhaggerty Bridge. Sea Plantain is another regular, easily recognised by its distinctive rat’s-tail flower spikes, while Spear-leaved Orache can occasionally be found growing close to the water’s edge.

The valley also supports some scarcer coastal specialists. Perhaps the most notable is Wild Celery, a regionally uncommon species that grows with its roots submerged in brackish water. The Ouseburn is one of the best places in Newcastle to see it. Do take care, however, not to confuse it with the superficially similar Hemlock Water-dropwort, a highly poisonous member of the carrot family.

Other salt-tolerant plants to look out for include Reflexed Saltmarsh-grass and Lesser Sea-spurrey. Meanwhile, Danish Scurvy-grass has exploited a rather different route inland, colonising roadsides and footpaths treated with rock salt during the winter.

Orchard and Meadow

One of the few places in the valley where native plants really take centre stage is the lovely, well-managed meadow surrounding Ouseburn Farm. Here, sympathetic management has allowed a surprisingly diverse grassland community to develop, supporting familiar meadow plants such as Teasel, Common Fleabane and Bird’s-foot Trefoil, all of which provide a valuable source of food for pollinating insects.

Look a little closer, and there are plenty of other botanical treasures to discover. The tall yellow flower spikes of Agrimony, a rather scarce plant locally, rise above the sward alongside Square-stalked St John’s-wort, a characteristic species of damp grassland. Water Figwort also occurs here, attracting a host of insects despite its rather understated flowers.

It’s a wonderfully peaceful place to enjoy a spot of botanising, particularly at the height of summer when the meadow is buzzing with life.

Star Plants

With relatively little semi-natural habitat remaining, opportunities for scarce native plants are limited in the Ouseburn Valley. Look closely, however, and there are still surprises to be found.

One of the most notable is Bee Orchid, first recorded here only a few years ago. A small population now persists in grassland off Cut Bank, and it can now be found in the fields around Leighton Street. Another local highlight is Broad-leaved Helleborine, discovered by NHSN botanists and now known from a handful of quiet corners, with its strongest population along Byker Link. If you’re lucky enough to spot one, please consider submitting your sighting to iRecord, as every record helps us monitor these small urban populations.

Another botanical gem of the valley is Yellow-wort, a species more usually associated with calcareous grasslands. Here, it has adapted remarkably well to urban life, finding a foothold in the lime-rich mortar of old walls and on former demolition sites. A particularly nice population can be seen amongst the old ruins off Ouse Street, where its delicate yellow flowers open only when touched by the sunshine.