I
love Winter, the cold frosty mornings, the dark nights, the crisp
fresh air. But, however much I enjoy winter I am always glad to get
that first glimpse of spring. That first warm day when you feel and
sense that life is ready to spring into action for another year. This
last weekend I really had that feeling and it felt good.
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| Lesser Celandine |
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| Still a Lot of Water About |
On
Saturday we went for a walk around the landscape park at Croome. Such
a beautiful part of Worcestershire and there can be a surprisingly
large amount of wildlife about. Our walk produced 38 species of bird,
the highlight was great views of a female Sparrowhawk. We also
enjoyed watching the resident little owl and a fly over from the ever
increasing Red Kites.
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| Red Kite and Buzzard |
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| The Excitement of watching a Female Sparrowhawk |
The
story of the Red Kite is a real positive one for conservation. They
were once seen as vermin and exterminated across England, only a
small population survived in Wales. In 1989 they started introducing
Kites to the Chilterns. Now there are possibly 1000 breeding pairs.
Over recent years the numbers of sightings in Worcestershire have
also increased. It was exciting to see my first of the year. Hoping
for many more sightings.
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| Ground Ivy |
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| An early Bluebell |
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| The Woodland Undergrowth Coming Through |
What
was particularity exciting to see at Croome at the weekend was the
emerging undergrowth. There was the smattering of green leaves from
the wild garlic and nettles breaking through the detritus on the
woodland floor. Around the greenery there was the sightings of some
wildflowers. It is great seeing the bright and colourful petals this
time of year, really give a sense of hope. It was amazing what we
found. Inevitably we came across lots of Lesser Celandine, primrose,
snow drops but also we came across some ground ivy and a very early
bluebell.
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| Nettles |
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| An area left for rewilding |
On
Sunday we had a walk around the canal, river and local nature
reserve. Again it was exciting to see the numbers of wild flowers
about. However, the area that really stood out was a small patch of
ground next to the canal. It is an area that has been left bare after
building works. No grass planted and hardly any topsoil, just left to
take care of its self. It does get regular mowing, so after
approximately two year since the area was “created” grass has
begun to dominate. However, it was fun to stop and look at the
wildflowers that had taken seed there.
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| Colt's-foot |
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| Common Field-speedwell |
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| Red Dead-nettle |
The
way that nature will reclaim land and transform baron areas into
beautiful green havens for wildlife is amazing. This process of
succession is great to witness. We paused on our walk to take in the
area. We saw plants like Colt's-foot, Forget-me-not, Red Dead-nettle and dandelion these are
plants that are often found on waste ground and beside footpaths. It
is always worth stopping and taking a look as you never know what you
might find. Often people think of them as weeds but I think that they
offer a little extra interest than the manicured, uniform,
monoculture of grass.
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| Field Forget-me-not |
