3b71c027_lds____Gardens___Cotswold_Life__5
[0] Pasqueflower [1] March to May. [2] The Pasque flower is easily identified with its beautiful and quite large purple bell-like flowers, encircled with golden anthers. A low plant, covered with silky hairs, it has feathery leaves which form a rosette around the stem at ground level. [3] Rare - found only in England. Occurs on the limestone grasslands of the Cotswolds, on East Anglian chalk and the Chilterns. Also Cambridgeshire and Yorkshire. [4] A member of the Buttercup family, it is called pasque flower or Easter flower as this is the time of year when it is usually in bloom. Known originally from the French passefleur, 'the flower which excells', in the past it was collected by flower girls and sold in cities. [6] Intensive management involving the removal of scrub, alongside the reintroduction of grazing have met with an increase in numbers in some areas. [5] 
Pasque flower is a scarce, native plant, which has been lost from many of its former sites due mainly to a decline in habitat quality. In the wild this plant occurs on dry, chalk & limestone grasslands, but due to a lack of grazing & arable cultivation sites have become colonised by scrub & taller grasses & herbs with the low growing pasquefower being out-competed.
Springtime Flowers in the Cotswolds. - Gardens - Cotswold Life
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