Category: wildlife

countryside · in the woods · spring · wildlife

The orchard in May

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)24 Comments

One of my favourite local nature reserves is a tiny hidden gem. It’s not immediately apparent from the road, so you have to know it’s there to know it’s there,  and most of the times that I’ve visited I’ve found myself alone and in perfect and peaceful solitude. It’s an old orchard, with twisted, ancient, lichen-encrusted trees from which the most beautifully delicate apple blossoms sprout, in every shade of soft, blushed pink. It’s abuzz with bees and other pollinators and carpeted with drifts of forget-me-nots. Behind the trees there’s a meadow and then a small patch of woodland, which in the springtime is pungent with the smell of the wild garlic growing abundantly under the greening trees and it is home to a large and complex badger sett.

Come and wander along the meandering green pathways with me, mind your head on the overhanging branches. We’ll walk quietly, listening to the bird song and the drone of the bees and when we’re hungry we’ll stop for a picnic lunch at the little bench by the pond, where we’ll watch the ducks squabble over pond weed and breathe deeply the softly fragrant breeze.

Tewin Orchard, early May 2023

 

countryside · foxes in my garden · in the woods · spring · wildlife

Early April, mostly in pictures

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)31 Comments

 

Words have been eluding me a little lately. Toby has been going through a bad patch behaviourally and I’m feeling a little tired and depleted. Happily Spring is now in full swing and the progression of colour throughout the countryside is providing many small delights. Being out with my camera always lifts my spirits and I hope these photos are a pleasure for you to see too. And Kit visiting again is such a joy. She’s been here once or twice a week and is no longer pregnant so hopefully there are some healthy growing cubs hidden somewhere safe nearby. You can see in the second picture of her that part of her belly fur has gone, I’ve been trying to read up on whether it’s related to her recently giving birth – maybe kind of a ‘brood patch’ as the cubs can’t temperature regulate for the first 3 weeks of life. If anyone knows the answer please do let me know.

Progress is being made with the horse pattern but it’s slow going at the moment as we’re now in the Easter break from college so I’m not getting much time to work on it. Hopefully I’ll have something ready to show you in a few weeks time.

Hope that you’re finding some small delights in your days too, J x

 

autumn · countryside · in the woods · wildlife

October :: In the woods

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)20 Comments

It was my intention to pop this post on the blog in the last week of October but unfortunately my blog provider Typepad had some major problems that week and this blog was down for much of that time. It was a bit nerve-wracking, as the thought of losing 16 years worth blogging was not a happy one. Apologies if you were trying to view anything during that week, especially if you were trying to follow one of my tutorials without any of the pictures showing up. Fingers crossed they now have everything permanently fixed, it certainly all seems to be working properly again, so all is calm and well again here.

Above are some of my pictures of the huge variety of fungi I’ve found out in the woods this year. I’ve been four times since the beginning of October and every time have found something new and rather marvellous. Autumn is such a wonderful time to be out in the woods and I’m deeply grateful that we have such rich and varied woodlands around us which are full of so many different types of wildlife at all times of the year. I even encountered a small herd of lovely, gentle Red Poll cattle, who are there as part of a conservation grazing project. They were lovely company and seemed quite interested in watching me take photos, gradually grazing their way over to me to give me a sniff.

Out in the woods many of the trees are still in green leaf but then the autumn so far has been mild and rather wet. Not happy nut hunting weather for squirrels and back at home our resident friendly squirrel has been quite soggy looking.

Inside at home there is knitting and pattern writing going on, though at a slower pace than I’d hoped for. The other day I worked out that I only get 22 hours of Toby-free time a week in which to be able to fully concentrate on anything, the rest of the time my brain is mostly mush as it tries to juggle between family and work life – which is probably why I keep knitting samples only to find that I’ve already knitted that piece. I am holding on to the thought that moving at a snail’s pace is still actually moving, and that progress, however small it may seem, is being made.

Well, the weekend is beckoning, with lots of wood walks with Toby and hopefully some early morning tea, toast and knitting in bed for me whilst he sleeps in. I’ll be back soon with some more amazing fungi finds and hopefully a little knitting news, ’til then keep well and happy x