We watched this crew in Frocester making short work of the removal of the grass crop with impressive precision in their driving through the fields.
Thursday, 30 June 2011
Silage Making
Wednesday, 29 June 2011
Wild Cherry
Sunday, 26 June 2011
Woodland Regeneration
The forest floor is now open to the sunlight and with it the beech mast is quick to germinate and an impressive number of young seedlings are competing to become new trees.
Saturday, 25 June 2011
Summer Weather
Friday, 24 June 2011
Moon Daisy
Leucanthemum vulgare is commonly called the Oxeye or Moon daisy. Climate conditions seem to have really suited these daisies this year. We have noticed a profusion of them in the Cotswold grassland on our walks as in this photo taken on Uley Bury.
We call them Moon daisies, this name is said to come from the fact that they do not close at night and so look wonderful by moonlight especially at mid-summer.
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Bird's Foot Trefoil
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
Shorn Sheep
Tuesday, 21 June 2011
Summer Solstice
Sunday, 19 June 2011
House Martins
Saturday, 18 June 2011
Old Walls
Tree roots are often a cause of damage as they distort the walls which have very little foundations.
There seems to be a revival in interest in the traditional drystone wall let's hope it continues.
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Broomrape
Monday, 13 June 2011
Rose Bay Willow Herb
Friday, 10 June 2011
Summer Sunset
Thursday, 9 June 2011
Goldfinches
They just sit one on either side of the feeder helping themselves, a joy to watch. We haven't worked out if there is just one pair or whether there are more. One good thing is that the squirrels don't find the seed interesting.
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Tortoiseshell Butterfly
Monday, 6 June 2011
Rain
Sunday, 5 June 2011
Foxgloves
The dry weather seems to have suited the foxglove this year and our neighbour's collection on the roadside verge gives a wonderful display. They grow easily from seed and here are interspersed with other early summer flowers.
Digitalis purpurea is the Latin name for the common purple foxglove, digitalis meaning finger-like flowers. As to why it is called a fox "glove" one theory is that the shape of the florets look like little gloves.
The foxglove was widely used in folk-medicine for a variety of conditions. Later in the 18th century William Withering realised its value on treating heart conditions although the dose is critical! Today the Digitalin group of drugs is prepared using European varieties but apparently during the second World War the Women's Institute organised gathering and drying of foxgloves in the UK.
Saturday, 4 June 2011
Hay Meadows
Most grass is cut earlier for silage but those left for hay give an impressive range of wild flower and grass species as they have time to set seed before cutting. They remind us of our childhood when hay was almost universally grown for feeding livestock, and made into small hay bales. Traditionally hay meadows were small, enclosed by walls or hedges and contained a mix of different types of grasses so that they were as nutritious as possible rather than the perennial rye-grass of intensive grassland.
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Yellow Rattle
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Grey Squirrels
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