BED 1 - THE SHINGLE COLONISERS
Shingle consists of pebble stones of various sizes and sand which is derived from ground down flintstones and chalk. It contains no soil or humus for plants. Certain plants have the characteristics that allow them to arrive as seeds, and take root and thrive in these conditions. The plants in this bed are examples of these colonisers: Sea kale with thick succulent leaves and cuticles, very deep tap roots to attach; Yellow horned-poppy with grey hairy leaves to slow down water loss and rosette formation to protect the young growing tip; low lying Stonecrops; tough leaved Sea-beet. Short lived plants like Scurvygrass that can grow and set seed in good weather.
