Species Name: Sea Holly - Eryngium maritimum

How to recognise

This is a readily identified and beautiful coastal plant. The blue-green spiky leaves, which give arise to its common name, cover the whole plant and have white veins and edges. The stems are pale with a blue-grey tinge. The powder-blue flowers appear between June and September and are borne in cone-like clusters and have spiny bracts. The flowers are hermaphrodite (having both male and female organs) and are pollinated by a wide range of insects. The plant grows up to 60cm tall and can be quite bushy.

Where to see

The plant is strictly coastal and can be found in dune systems and sometimes shingle along sections of the north Norfolk coast between Snettisham and Wells and along the eastern coast between Mundesley and Gt Yarmouth.

When to see

The plant is perennial and in leaf all year, however it is seen at its best when in flower.

Conservation status in Norfolk

Up to the end of the 19th century the roots of this plant were dug up and candied for use as a sweetmeat and restorative. It is possible that this practice had a significant effect on the distribution of the plant from which it is only now recovering. Sea holly is still a common though thinly spread plant along favourable areas of the Norfolk coastline, and some indicators suggest a slow extension of its range. The major threat to the long-term survival and spread of the plant is erosion of its sand-dune habitat resulting from either climatic change or human activity. The Norfolk Biodiversity Action Plan recognises the need to put measures in place to protect the existing habitat and where possible enhance or expand this precious resource.

How to help

When walking in dune systems keep to designated paths to minimise erosion.

Take part in the Norfolk Wildlife Trust Coastal Survey (commencing late spring 2009) which is aiming to map the distribution of this plant throughout the county.

Did you know?

In Elizabethan times the candied roots of the plant were believed to be a strong aphrodisiac. They are cited in Shakespeare’s play The Merry Wives of Windsor in a speech by Falstaff:
‘Let the sky rain potatoes,
Let it thunder to the tune of Green sleeves,
Hail kissing comfits and snow eringoes (sea holly)
Let there come a tempest of provocation..’

Finding out more

Norfolk BAP

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