'Endangered' lettuce found at Cotswold farm. (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

'Endangered' lettuce found at Cotswold farm.

A RARE gem of a lettuce has been discovered on land at a Cotswold farm.

Arable farmer Chris Mills, of Upton Downs Farm near Aldsworth, found the rare relative of lamb's lettuce in a wheat field.

The endangered species - Valerianella Rimosa, also known as Broad-fruited Cornsalad - has been found growing at only four sites in England.

Six seeds have now been sent to the Millennium Seedbank in Sussex to be tested by x-ray and to undergo a germination test to prove they are Valerianella Rimosa.

They are being stored in a vault there at minus 20 degrees centigrade.

Last year Mr Mills signed up for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' Countryside Stewardship Scheme.

This means that cultivated field margins have been allowed to grow at the farm without being sprayed.

Since then several rare native plant species have come back to their roots.

Mr Mills said: "The scheme helps me to support wild plants and animals as part of the farming business and I never knew that such a rare plant would be found in one of my wheat fields."

Susie Smith, Stewardship adviser for DEFRA, said: "This has been an exciting development for us as it was such a surprise to find that the corn salad was the really rare kind.

"Most arable field margins only support common plants but we never know where the uncommon ones are going to pop up on field margins created by the Countryside Stewardship.

"We have been able to tailor the scheme to encourage the rare and declining species whilst still controlling weeds that are very common and a threat to the farmer's crops."

Pic: Chris Mills with the lamb's lettuce he found growing in a field and inset Valerianella Rimosa.