Synonymy

Pteridietum aquilini Goodman & Gillham 1954 p.p.; Endymio-Armerietum maritimae Malloch 1971.

Constant species

Festuca rubra, Hyacinthoides non-scripta, Rumex acetosa, Holcus lanatus.

Rare species

Scilla verna.

Physiognomy

The Festuca-Hyacinthoides community comprises a lush carpet of F. rubra and H. non-scripta with Holcus lanatus (sometimes abundant) and scattered plants of Rumex acetosa. Few other species are uniformly frequent throughout but Daucus carota ssp. gummifer occurs occasionally. Scilla verna and Sedum telephium are distinctive at low frequencies.

Sub-communities

Armeria maritima sub-community: Endymio-Armerietum maritimae, Cochlearia officinalis sub-association Malloch 1971. A. maritima and Silene vulgaris ssp. maritima attain constancy in the grassier sward of this sub-community where H. lanatus and (especially) F. rubra tend to rival H. non-scripta in abundance. Cochlearia officinalis is differential and there are small amounts of other maritime species: C. danica, Beta vulgaris spp. maritima and Spergularia rupicola.

Ranunculus ficaria sub-community: Endymio-Armerietum maritimae, Ranunculus ficaria sub-association Malloch 1971. H. non-scripta is much more consistently dominant here though F. rubra, H. lanatus and Dactylis glomerata are all constant contributors to the sward. The most distinctive feature of the vegetation, however, is the constancy in small amounts of R. ficaria and the preferential occurrence of Heracleum sphondylium, Galium verum and Pteridium aquilinum and a variety of species characteristic of scrub and woodland: Brachypodium sylvaticum, Primula vulgaris, Viola riviniana, Hedera helix and Rubus fruticosus agg.

Habitat

The Festuca-Hyacinthoides community is most characteristic of situations where deep, moist and fertile brown soils develop under moderate maritime influence and it is usually found on gentle to moderate north-facing slopes or in deep gullies fairly high on cliffs.