Hedges
The park has many hedges which remain from its former use as farmland. They date to the enclosure acts of the 18th Century although it appears likely that some may be earlier.
Hedgerows are almost unique to English landscapes and globally significant. Furthermore, Central Park’s hedgebanks divide the park into ‘outdoor rooms’ and make it possible to have a different use in each. The hedges also support a range of habitats and bring biodiversity to the heart of Plymouth. The hedgebank species include:
Woody Species
| Hawthorn Blackthorn Sessile oak Pedunculate oak Elm Silver birch Downy birch Common beech Hazel Sycamore Ash Holly Common alder Small-leaved lime Dog rose Elder | Crataegus monogyna Prunus spinosa Quercus petraea Quercus robur Ulmus sp Betula pendula Betula pubescens Fagus sylvatica Corylus avellana Acer pseudoplatanus Fraxinus excelsior Ilex aquifolium Alnus glutinosa Tilia cordata Rosa canina Sambucus nigra |
Ground Flora
| Ivy Hedge bedstraw Nettles Greater plantain Ribwort plantain Hart’s-tongue fern Hedge bindweed Bramble Cow parsley Ragwort Liverworts Bracken Greater plantain Cleavers Docks Sweet violet Spear thistle Dandelion Primrose Black spleenwort Bluebells Red campion Wood sorrel sp Lesser celandine | Hedera helix Galium mollugo Urtica dioica Plantago major Plantago lanceolata Asplenium scolopendrium Calystegia sepium Rubus fruticosus Anthriscus sylvestris Jacobaea vulgaris Marchantiophyta Pteridium aquilinium Plantago major Galium aparine Rumex sp Viola odorata Cirsium vulgare Taraxacum officinale Primula vulgaris Asplenium adiantum-nigrum Hyacinthoides non-scripta Silene dioica Oxalis sp Ranunculus ficaria |