Come away with the raggle taggle gypsy-o
If the amount of blackthorn flowers is anything to go by, there’ll be plenty of sloes this year. Has anyone ever made sloe gin, I bet Tish has.
The river and mill leat area is my favourite place to walk the dogs at the moment, it’s filled with wild flowers and the sound of birdsong, there the blackthorn is prolific.
Join this weeks photo challenge at the Daily Post.
There’s something about transitions and thresholds that I find fascinating, yet I can’t pinpoint it. Walking the dogs today, I saw this very handsome, but still very sleepy tree.
Then further across the fields I spy this blossom.
Last year’s oak leaves hanging on.
This little wood wasn’t here the last time I came to Eastern fields.
Hooray for hawthorn, creamy flowers in May, Hawthorn Jelly later in summer.
The tops of these trees are waking up, I must re-learn the tree names that I knew in infant school.
Oh the limitations of a phone camera!
A serpent awakening?
Let’s end with damsons – or sloes?
We’re all observing the late arrival of spring in the UK, and this is my second post for ‘Awakening’, this weeks photo challenge.
Hello my friends, I haven’t been around much lately and I’ve missed you, but I wouldn’t have been very good company. I’m emerging though and have been watching spring doing the same, in my little part of the world.
Thank you all for your sweet messages in the last couple of weeks, even though I haven’t responded, it has meant a lot to me. The friends I’ve made here are so kind and supportive, you’ve touched my heart.
I walked down my road from work today , with my neighbour Katie and she admired the euphorbia draping itself over my garden wall. I thanked her because it had self seeded from hers! We decided it was at it’s best, even better than her mother plant and that I should take a photo.
So as I’d got the camera out, I decided to see what else was happening.
I must say it’s nice to get home in daylight and next week will be even better. The weather’s been squally again, bright sunshine, then short, sharp showers and some very heavy rain and wind. I think the plants enjoyed the freshness.
Ben over at the daily post has chosen ‘Graceful’ for this weeks photo challenge, this is what he said.
Gracefulness is a tricky quality — it manifests itself as an effortless, subtle harmony between a subject and its environment.
Personally, there are few things I find more graceful than spring flowers. During the dark months of winter, I long for little signs that they are beginning to emerge from the earth, or burst from seemingly dead twigs. It makes my heart sing when I spot new growth.
Of course there are always the hellebores, generous and voluptuous as they parade in the shade.
Some tilt their heads to any flash of sun they can, while others, more shy, make you bow down to greet them.
A little later, the wonderfully graceful Acers arrive at the ball, stylishly clothed in tropical pink and lime green, effortlessly attracting attention.
Tulips are so cheerful and bold, this one looks excited, like it’s waving it’s arms to the world, shouting ‘look at me, look at me, I’m doing my spring dance!’
Anyone who knows me would guess that this last pic, of the first flower of the year isng flower my favourite. Faithfully, every January the snowdrops reappear like little virgins in tutus, surely the most graceful of all!
Are you posting something graceful this week?
My seven day nature challenge is over now, I really enjoyed it and if I had more time it’s something that I would love to continue. Meg was one of the people I nominated and she is watching spring unfold in Warsaw. This morning I saw her day six post from yesterday and I’m tickled by the idea that if she took her photos yesterday, we were snapping the same thing, on the same continent! Not such good photos as yours Meg, my eyes were on the toddlers, but what a coincidence.
I’m glad I braved the cold wind for a lunchtime walk now.
We’ve had some glorious weather in April here in the UK, short sleeves and paddling, interspersed with grey cloudy days as we would expect. Coming home from Spain this week has been a sharp shock though, rain, wind and as low as 10degrees in the day.
But yesterday on my lunchtime stroll there was a mini breakthrough, still cool but a gorgeous spring day. This is where I strolled.
stride the path ahead
through nature’s springtime splendour
emerald England
Waiting for April
fresh blossom ready to bloom
blue skies and long days
Lucid Gypsy 