What to Look for in Nature – June Welcome to Summer! Not only does June include Midsummer’s Day, the point of the year when day-length is at its longest, but is also the peak time for wildlife activity. Across the country, wildflowers are blooming, insects are buzzing, birds are nesting and young animals are growing …
What to Look for in Nature: May
Marvellous May. Certainly one of my favourite months of the year, and the month that usually forms the bridge from spring into summer. True summer is a few weeks off yet, coming around the summer solstice in mid-June, but May gives us a glimpse of those deliciously scented, warm sunny days that enchant us. This …
What to Look for in Nature – April, Part 2
In April, there is so much happening in the natural world. If any month surely deserves two editions of ‘What to look for’ blog posts it is this one! In ‘What to Look for in Nature – March & April’ (published March 16th 2018) we looked at the signs that spring was gaining momentum; frogspawn …
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Little April Shower
If March is the month of winds and the last snows, April is certainly the month of showers. So far this year, in my little corner of Sussex at least, it has been a cold, wet spring. Following the thaw that swelled the ditches with melt water and liquified within the ground to create sodden …
Blackthorn Winter
It has felt like we have been poised on the cusp of the seasonal change for weeks. The cold weather we associate with winter lingered long into the 3rd calendar month of the year, and according to the weather forecast, hasn't yet been completely banished to the mysterious artic north. But snow isn't just a …
What to look for in Nature – March and April
The old folklore states that ‘March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb’. Indeed, the weather of March is particularly changeable, poised as the month is on the cusp of two seasons. Winter can still make its influence felt, especially in the northern counties, but in my home area of Sussex, …
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One From The Archives: A Downland Walk
Archive post: Thursday, 19 February 2015 A Downland Walk For one of the first times this year, the sun shone with noticeable warmth, making it a pleasure to stretch, breath deeply and stroll grassy paths, and gaze upwards into the blue. I climbed high above the village onto the side of the downs, and higher, …
Patch Watch: February 15th, Bumblebee and Bullfinches
I have taken to walking often on the heathland. I leave work for an hour at lunchtime, follow the path through the wood and cross the busy main road. As soon as the gate clunks shut softly behind me, I am in a different world. For a short time I can put all thoughts of …
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What to Look for in Nature: February
The first days of February are the time of Imbolc or ‘the first showing’, the start of spring in Celtic and pagan calendars. Just four short weeks into the New Year, and already the season is progressing from late winter, into a semi-spring. It is a fickle season when there is still a likelihood of …
From the Archives: Winter Jewels
I have been doing some blog 'housekeeping' and looking over some past work. It is amazing to think that I have been blogging for nearly 9 years, as I started right back in March 2009! Of course my style and writing quality has changed over that time (I hope you would agree, for the better!), …
