Heathland & Grassland Plant Identification (north of Glasgow) NEW FOR 2026

About this event

A day course giving participants;

• the skills and confidence to identify the key grasses and flowers of heathland and grassland.
• learning the key features for UKHAB survey and BNG condition assessments.
• a chance to do sampling and share ideas with colleagues.

Both Mugdock Country Park and Dumbrock Loch Meadows lie just 10 miles north of Glasgow and contain a wide range of habitats and plant communities, from acid grassland and moorland to unimproved, herb-rich grassland and damp, calcareous flushes. The soils beneath these habitats are unusually varied in nutrient and water levels, meaning a variety of plant communities are present. All of these support a range of key plant species, many of which are at their peak in June.

This course will teach easy ways to identify typical and common species in these habitats, including numerous grasses, sedges and rushes, as well as some of the more unusual plants. We will also look at different survey techniques, with a chance to carry these out with other attendees, both to consolidate knowledge of the species and teach recording methods.

Please be aware that there will be some short but steep inclines.

All proceeds from the course will go to supporting our endangered species conservation work.

About the tutor

Leif Bersweden is an experienced botanical tutor with a relaxed approach to teaching plants.

He is a writer, botanist and nature communicator with a face-down, bottom-up approach to watching wildlife. Leif grew up in rural Wiltshire where he taught himself how to identify the local flora and has been championing our wild plants and the joy they bring ever since. He is the author of The Orchid Hunter and Where the Wildflowers Grow.

What to bring

· Notebook/clipboard

· Hand lens

· Footwear appropriate for both wet and dry ground and for walking on unstable surfaces

· Packed lunch

· Water

· Sunblock/sun hat/waterproofs

The recommended text for the grasses part of the course is ‘A Field Guide to Grasses, Sedges and Rushes’ by Dominic Price, which is available to purchase in advance here should you want a copy. Having a wildflower identification guide isn’t required to attend this course, but any general flower guide should suffice if you wish to bring one.

A species list for the site is available here.

Please inform us of any relevant medical requirements/conditions we should be aware of prior to the course.

Directions

Park at the Mugdock Country Park Visitor Centre. The car park is pay and display and there are toilet and café facilities available.

The day will run from 10am to 4pm and details of the itinerary will be supplied to attendees closer to the time.

Google maps – click here.

what3words – ///tickles.brilliant.canoe

Course schedule

Meet for a 10am start around the picnic tables at the back of the Mugdock Country Park Visitor Centre. We’ll be walking a short way onto Peitches Moor for a morning session on the plants of heathland, moorland and acid grassland. At lunchtime we’ll return to the picnic tables outside the visitor centre to eat and use the facilities, before heading out across the road onto Dumbrock Moor for the afternoon session where there’s a nice mix of heathland and dry and wet unimproved grassland. The focus of the afternoon will be on revising the morning’s plants, but there will be a few additional species, including some more unusual ones. We will finish the course and be back at the car park by 4pm.

Adverse weather

This is an outdoor run course on an exposed site, and as such we request that participants bring suitable clothing including sunhats, sunblock, and full waterproofs & fleeces. As the climate breaks down, we do occasionally have severe weather where either it is very difficult to take notes due to prolonged heavy rain, or temperatures have reached a point where long exposure can be detrimental to health.

In these instances, we will run a condensed version of the course, where we aim to see all the species before lunch but have less time to take notes on them. We will then give attendees free access to the corresponding online course for 24 hours, which means you can take notes and look at the species in more detail in the comfort of your home. We have built a corresponding online catalogue of courses for this purpose, and we therefore feel we can offer the same training experience while looking after attendees’ welfare in the field.

Therefore if you look at the forecast before the course and start panicking - don’t worry, we’ve got you!

Course certificate

This course can be used as part of your Continuing Professional Development (CPD). We invite attendees to download their own certificate and complete the numbers of hours spent on the course, as we are aware some attendees spend more time reading up about courses before the day, and writing their notes up and sitting the online course tests afterwards. The hours on your certificate should accurately reflect this time.

Feedback

Feedback from Species Recovery Trust courses can be found here.