It is Changing …….

Change is on the way..

Although summer still has many more days instore for us there is no doubt that the days are starting later and finishing earlier…..  that sun is drifting south and giving us mornings and evenings of longer shadows.

The wet spring and heatwave summer has played many tricks on our plants. We have a Rose that normally only produces flowers the once, so this year it has been a bonus producing a flower on 3 occasions… a real bonus even if the later flowers have not been as vibrant or strong.  Berries are forming and Sweet Chestnuts are prolific, hopefully giving us a good crop of nuts in a few weeks time. As for the recent rains, well they didn’t amount to much but did rejuvenate flowers like Geraniums. The river is still low and calm, even though the weir runs white. The year is progressing and autumn will arrive in due course…in the meantime we have that late summer where the light is low, warm and kind.

Ideal evenings for a jog in the Park  (if of course you are that way inclined)

If not then walk the dog…or just put your feet up and relax   🙂

24th August

(C) David Oakes 2018

 

 

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Fresher…..

The start of the week followed a similar pattern of drizzle, some wind but mainly sunshine…..just a lot cooler. The Lake looked fresh in the morning sunshine but the waters had that murky look from the past heat and disturbance from the rains.

What did look rather fine is the new Lilly patch planted by the Angling Club. that and other plantings of wildlife friendly flora is making a world of difference…

The fresh morning feel was much more noticeable in our woodland.  Bracken and Ferns that have been suffering in the drought have a new lease on life adding a green hue to the darker woods…all together an invigorating walk….

 

It is now August so there is no denying that the year is progressing, seed heads are now the norm for some of our wild flowers though some others are still doing there best to add colour..

Harvesting is still ongoing creating yet another seasonal dimension…

But those signs of an approaching autumn which may well be early this year are appearing as a reminder that the summer has been so dry…maybe a period of prolonged rain may revitalise everything….

3rd August

(C) David Oakes 2018

 

Summer is on the way back….

It does seem strange but  encounters on the mornings walkies with Buster produced more than a few comments on how cool it was….25c rising to 27c ! Now that isn’t bad in my book and in a normal summer would be recognised as hot.  Yep, we had a blip in this summer’s heatwave over the weekend, even some rain, not as heavy as some nor as much as some of my gardening friends would have liked.

But it has freshened things up, the woods in particular smell and look fresher….the bracken is standing tall again even if the lower  stems are dry and brittle….autumn may well come sooner this year.

Talking of autumn the weekend winds have brought down some of the weaker branches and lots of dried leaves giving the woodland floor a real autumnal look….

Teasels, another late summer – autumnal indicator have also produced there prickly seed heads and most have lost those purple flowers, that for a short time, add to the attraction for feeding insects…

Nor does the recent wet spell seem to have harmed the Butterfly population. It has been the best year for a great many species. As soon as we got even just a little sun they were out again..

Back in the garden the Pale Whites which seem to have had an explosion this season are still busy on our Lavender…

So, as another month nears its end, I guess summer still has a great deal to offer us.

31st July

(C) David Oakes 2018

 

Tw’s only a hiccup…….

Summers Poppies….

Summer is back….yesterday was merely a plip in the weather.

Lush is the phrase used to describe to meadows flower, they also prove that white is as bright as any colour in the floral spectrum..

even the pond is lush with growth whilst sporting a ‘gem’ of a Lilly…

 

So far its not been a bad year for the flowers both in the wild or our garden.  Last year we seem to stagger through in uncertainty….this year everything seems to have happened with a flourish.  We just hope they aren’t all going to fizzle out.

19th June

(C) David Oakes 2018

 

Well Sunday heralded a Change in the Weather….

 

Beech Wood, Derbyshire

Sunday brought the change in weather that had been forecast for earlier in the week. No rain of any consequence and certainly not enough to dampen the woodland floor.  But it was dull with just an occasional flash of brightness that pretended to be the sun.

So the woods were darker under the leaf canopy but the biggest change seemed to be the temperature…. by comparison with the warm spring and summer the days  the contrast seem much greater that the reality as it still registered 17c.

All in all it was a mini shock to the system and reminded us on just how well the weather gods have looked after us….even though it cannot last for ever!

18th June

(C) David Oakes 2018