Sunday 6 July 2014

Wild Flowers: The Richness of Summer

Self-Heal & Tormentil

Walking through the fields today it was hard not to crush flowers underfoot. The meadows and banks were awash with colour. After the earlier rain there was a rich smell of damp vegetation and the flowers and grasses glowed in the weak, hazy sun. Overhead lapwings and oystercatchers wheeled and cried but mu eyes were drawn downwards to the masses of tiny bright flowers. This year there seem to be more flowers than ever, though it feels that way every year at this time when the sudden overwhelming lushness of summer belies the cold harshness of much of the year.

Wild Flower Pasture

Much of the afternoon was spent lying and crouching on the damp ground looking closely at the delicate yet hardy flowers. Sometimes the glory of nature lies in the tiny details rather than in sweeping landscapes or charismatic animals. Here's what I saw.

Buttercup

Tormentil, Self-Heal, Eyebright

Forget-Me-Not

Speedwell & Tormentil

Thistle with bumblebee



Self-Heal, Yellow Vetch, Eyebright & Tormentil



2 comments:

  1. 'Sometimes the glory of nature lies in the tiny details rather than in sweeping landscapes or charismatic animals.' Absolutely.

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  2. Looks like you had a lovely walk. I did a foraging course recently and to my amazement we stripped thistle of it's outer later and ate the strip at its centre and it was beautiful!

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