Blackthorn

Rural Dorset vs. Urban Manchester: Autumnal Plants and Fungi

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Series in collaboration with guest writer Emma Rogan

Autumn is a time of plenty, painted with fantastic colours, such as leaves changing, berries and nuts adorning unveiling branches, and the emergence of marvellous mushrooms. Wherever you go during this time, autumn may be moving at a different pace, but the vein of change runs throughout. In Dorset, autumn begins with the first blackberries in August, the start of the migration of birds to warmer climes, and the beginning of a bite in the early morning. In Manchester these signs can also be found, but the change in season is more easily spotted by the increasing carpet of amber leaves on the pavement. For nature, this time of bounty and activity foreshadows the days of dormancy to come.

Last time in Rural vs. Urban, Dorset-born naturalist Laura was joined by Manchester-born wildlife enthusiast and friend Emma, to explore the magical minibeasts that could be found in their local patches. From grasshoppers to froghoppers, both Laura and Emma were amazed by the variety of species they found in such a short space of time! No experts on minibeasts, just enthusiastic adults, their eyes were opened to this miniature world by slowing down and focussing on the smaller things. In this way, we can gain a lot, from escapism to inspiration.

In this next instalment of Rural vs. Urban, we move into autumn with Laura and Emma exploring their home areas to see in the change of the seasons. As colours change and leaves fall, what will location and season mean for the plant and fungi life observed? What treasures will be discovered as we go back to the golden days of autumn?

Laura’s Plants and Fungi in the Countryside

This year autumn could be felt in cold mornings and stormy weather, but did not start showing its true face until October. I first took in the change of the season with a walk to my local woods on the 6th October, seeing the ruby red gleam of Hawthorn berries and a spectacular sunset of chilly blues and pinks. I was finally inspired explore all that autumn had to offer.

So, on the next day, I ventured out into my family’s land to take in all that nature had to offer, as autumn made its slow decline towards putting the landscape to sleep. Leaves were yet to start falling on this day, other than being ripped from their branches in strong winds, but were beginning to show a change in colour. Purples, reds, yellows, oranges, browns, and also the spectacular pink of Spindle leaves. By far the most common trees to be found in my local area though, are Pedunculate Oak, Field Maple, Hazel, Blackthorn, Elder, and Hawthorn; Oaks being a personal favourite.

The warm weather this autumn has meant that it has felt even slower in its start. So it was not surprising on my walk to find a variety of flowers still out, ranging from Herb Robert and Wild Marjoram to Meadow Cranesbill and Rough Hawkbit. With their presence at least, they will have provided an extended food source for wildlife that were yet to hide for the winter, for example Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies that were still on the wing. They also added colour to the magnificent display of nature’s bounty this autumn, which included the rich reds of Rose hips and the deep blues of sloes.

The warm and damp weather also provided the perfect conditions for fruiting fungi, an area where my knowledge is yet to fledge. Two species I did learn on my exploration though, were the pale, peeling Shaggy Inkcap and the unusual hulking forms of Bracket fungus, possibly Southern. Looking for fungi showed me that every day is a learning day and that our knowledge is ever expanding!

To round off my autumn adventure, I picked some apples from our apple trees to make a family favourite, an apple cake. The cake was simple to make, but went down a treat!

Emma’s Urban Plants and Fungi Adventure

For me, no time of the year evokes a feeling of new beginnings more than September. Perhaps it’s a throwback to when September meant the start of a new school year, but the changing of the season always lifts my spirits. Autumn is the season of hot chocolate, curling up with a book, re-watching Gilmore Girls for the fourth (okay, sixth…) time, and wrapping up warm to head out for a walk in the crisp autumn sun! Which, on September 26th, is exactly what me and my partner did.

Our first stop, as usual, was the beloved Parsonage Gardens in Didsbury. This beautiful walled garden provides a home for an amazing variety of trees, looked after by a dedicated team of volunteers. My favourite is the old mulberry tree at the entrance to the gardens, but we also found a corkscrew hazel, a yew tree with bright red berries, some bamboo, a sargent’s rowan tree, a Chinese dogwood, and some ferns! I love ferns because of how ancient they are. With a fossil record dating back to the middle Devonian (383-393 million years ago) they are one of the oldest groups of plants on Earth. A piece of ancient history on our doorstep!

As we walked down the hill to Fletcher Moss Gardens, we passed the Church of St James on Stenner Lane. St James is the second oldest church in Manchester, dating back to 1275. I paused for a moment to admire the ivy spilling over the walls surrounding the church garden, before continuing on. The species we encountered as we wandered through Fletcher Moss ranged from the small (forget-me-nots) to the large (silver birch). We also found another rowan tree, the bane of witches! Rowan has an illustrious history in British folklore as red was considered the best colour for fighting evil, so it was planted by houses so that it’s red berries could protect the occupants from witches.

Our walk took us further into Stenner Woods, where we were on the lookout for fungi. This is not my area of expertise, but I’ve done my best to identify what we found! Growing on the side of a fallen log was a small mushroom which I think is a type of inkcap, and on top of another log was a large, flat mushroom with a white underside which I think is a giant polypore. Like Laura I spotted some bracket fungus, although the fungus looked to be past it’s best so I was not sure of the species! While searching through the woodland for fungi, I also came across an abandoned spider’s web adorned with raindrops which looked like crystals.

We ended our plant and fungi hunt by walking through the iconic poplar grove which leads from the river back to Stenner Lane. I had a lovely time on my autumn adventure, but I think I need to brush up on my fungus identification skills!

Autumnal Plants and Fungi

Autumn is usually defined as the season between summer and winter when leaves change colour and fall, the weather becomes cooler, and a time of full maturity is reached, such as crops becoming ripe. Autumn is so much more than this though, with it often being a favourite time of year for many, encapsulated in a feeling of cosiness, plentifulness and change. For Laura at this time of year, the sunsets are spectacular, the nights full of starry skies, and surroundings full of natural food on offer. For Emma, frost sparkles on bright leaves, the morning air becomes crisp, and the smell of hot chocolate is a welcome aroma.

This season is also a time for plants and fungi to reach the ends of their annual cycle and go out with a bang. As Laura and Emma found, autumn is a vibrant season before winter’s slumber descends on the landscape. It was interesting to see some variation between the two locations though, such as in Manchester more exotic species thrive and autumn marches forward earlier than in Dorset. This would be due to the naturally milder climate found in an urban setting, but temperatures tending to be colder in the North-West than the balmier South-West.

Still there were treasures to be found in both locations, with plants and fungi taking centre stage. Colourful, bountiful and spectacular, such species capture the imagination and provide a lifeline in nature. Engulfed in the cold and storminess of winter, we can now look back on the golden glow of autumn days with a smile, before we begin to look forward to the return of new life once again.

Spring in Photos 2021

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Last year spring was my lifeline, as we experienced the world around us being thrown into disarray. This year spring was instead turned on its head, with changing weather patterns making it unpredictable and different from what we would usually expect at this time of year. A hot and stormy March, cold April, and wet May made nature emerge later, with spring events taking longer to arrive, and being anywhere up to 60 days late.

Still this year’s spring has been magnificent. Vibrant and colourful, it had much to be celebrated. My family’s farm in Dorset became full of new life, from blossoming trees and flowers, to fox cubs and leverets. Spring is unsurprisingly my favourite time of year, so this year I again made a point of getting out as much as possible to experience it, with my camera by my side. Here’s a look at some of my favourite photos from this spring, either for their aesthetic appeal, meaning to me, or overall joy factor.

Spring in Photos 2021

1. Blackthorn – This photo was taken at the beginning of April on a misty morning. It was a beautiful way to see delicate white blackthorn flowers in a different light, framed in front of a splintered stem.

2. Male blackbird – Blackbirds are an iconic sound of spring for me and also so many others. Their beautiful song often symbolises the beginnings of longer, lighter evenings, or for me fresh spring mornings. This male would sit in this willow tree every morning throughout spring to sing his song, defending his territory and mate. In particular, this male and his female nested in our shed, successfully fledging 5 chicks at the start of June.

3. Oak trees of a farming landscape – What hits me first in this photo is how bare this landscape seems for late April. The oak trees have barely begun their bud burst, looking skeletal behind a farm field that is being worked. This almost autumnal scene is refreshing though, showing the new beginnings of another year in nature.

4. Camera trap fox cub – This photo is one of my favourites from this spring, symbolising a successful spring camera trapping season (blog post to come). This was one location, an abandoned badger sett, where I thought that foxes may have been breeding. My camera trap proved my feeling to be right, and treated me to an assortment of photos, day and night, of 2 very active fox cubs. Just one of multiple litters that I found on my family’s farm this year!

5. Wood anemones – Wood anemones have slowly become one of my favourite spring flowers, being one of the first to appear in woodlands across the UK. They are a great indicator of ancient woodland, and an interesting flower to photograph for their shape and colour. My memory cards are full of all sorts of different types of photos of this species!

6. Tawny owl chicks – One of my highlights of spring this year has been ringing chicks under license with my bird ringing group (Conservation Action). In particular, I had a great day in early May at the Woodland Trust’s Duncliffe Woods site in North Dorset checking tawny owl nest boxes. It has been a poor year for tawny owls in general, which was reflected by Duncliffe Woods, but we did get lucky and found 3 active nest boxes. I had the pleasure of ringing these chicks, under permit, which will provide important information to help conserve tawny owls in the future.

7. Brown hare – This year has been the year of the hare on my family’s farm in Dorset. We have a reputation for being a great site for this species, but this year has been truly astounding. With 1-3 hares to every field, I was humbled to spend my spring out working alongside them everyday, getting to see them up close and experience their behaviour firsthand. Truly magical!

8. Pussy willow flowers – Willow flowers have been a difficult subject for me to photograph this year, with poor results. I was pleased though to find this refreshing photo on my memory card, of willow flowers stood out against a clear blue evening sky. They are beautiful in their own right.

9. Spider in macro – This photo that is not photographically ‘perfect’ is still a favourite of mine from this spring for other reasons. As I invest in my camera equipment, my latest edition has been my first professional macro lens. So this photo was the first photo I even took with my new lens, and it fills me with joy to see the new world I can now start to explore.

10. Grey wagtail – Last year my Dad began digging a pond in his field that he is currently wilding. Though he was rained off in the autumn before completion, the half-dug pond is already attracting a wealth of species from birds to insects. Majestic grey wagtails that have begun populating this area over the winter have also found the pond this spring.

11. Sunset – Though sunrises are magical, sunsets have always been my most favourite time of the day. This is because many of my happiest memories can be linked to beautiful and vibrant sunsets from field research in Canada to evenings at home on my family’s farm. I have seen so many incredible sunsets already so far, but I hope to see many more in the future.

12. Wild garlic – Though my busy spring dissuaded me from mornings waking up before the sunrise, I did spend a couple of glorious mornings waking up and getting out an hour or so after instead. The light is glorious at this time of day and always provides me with inspiration for my photos and life in general. This photo represents this magical time of day and the joys of spring flowers, wild garlic being an iconic example.

13. Feather in the bluebells – Wait, a feather again? Well feathers always sneak into my many files of photos, being a symbol of mine and representing my love of feathered species. They can also tell us useful information about what is living in a habitat, for example this feather is most likely from a collared dove.

14. Aberdeen angus calf – This photo is one of my favourite photos of one of my mum’s beef suckler calves. Spring is a time of new life in nature and on the farm, with my mum’s small free range beef herd giving birth at this time. This year they have weathered it through some turbulent months, but now are enjoying a bit of sunshine on their backs.

15. Honey bee – As I was intending to buy a macro lens this year, I made sure to time my purchase to be able to use it on the flowering of the poached egg plants in my family’s garden. It arrived well in advance, and, despite some rained off days, I got to spend some happy lunchtimes in the sunshine photographing bees on these flowers. This is one of my favourite macro photos of the flowers this year.

16. Dog roses – Dog roses were the last event of spring that I looked out for this year, and it kept me waiting! They were 22 days later for me than last year, with the first flowers blooming on the 8th June. They came out in force though, covering hedges within the space of a couple of days, adding some more colour to our hedgerows. With their lateness though, I feel like they also marked the end of spring this year.

Spring 2021: How It Happened

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

This spring has been an unexpected, unpredictable and turbulent season, that has taken its time to unfurl. Traditionally spring is a season that is characterised as calm and dry, with days getting longer and warmer, and the potential for cooler nights. As lighter evenings returned this year though, spring was far from traditional, with a stormy then hot March, cold and frosty April, and a wash out of a May.

Since 2017, I have recorded the dates of the events of spring every year, and with the start of my blog, every year since I have analysed and compared spring events to see how the season took form. Last year I showed that the timing of spring events is heavily linked to spring weather, resulting in either earlier or later occurrence accordingly. Over the last couple of years this has varied alot, so it will be interesting to see what has gone on this year.

This spring a lot has been going on for me, but I have still found time to be out in nature as much as possible and to enjoy the time when one season slips into another. It has felt that spring has dragged on longer this year, with the potential effects of spring starting warm and progressing to cold, then wet. So as this spring comes to a gradual close and the heat sets in, it is time to find out what actually went on during spring 2021.

Trees

This year there was a general trend for trees being later in their bud burst, leaves unfurling, and flowering compared to 2020. Even before the frosty nights of April, silver birch (Betula pendula) buds burst 14 days later on 26th March, Norway maple (Acer platanoides) first flowered 5 days later on 26th March, and beech (Fagus sylvatica) buds burst 14 days later on 27th March.

As we moved through April and into May, spring events began to stretch even further in their lateness. For example, wild cherry (Prunus avium) buds burst 35 days later on 8th April, horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) first flowered 18 days later on 20th April, alder (Alnus glutinosa) buds burst 15 days later on 21st April, the first lime (Tilia x europaea) leaves unfurled 23 days later on 26th April, pedunculate/english oak (Quercus robur) leaves first unfurled 31 days later on 5th May, and ash (Fraxinus excelsior) flowered 37 days later on 9th May.

Field maple (Acer campestre) did not follow this trend though, with bud burst being 10 days earlier on 26th March, and first leaves unfurling 5 days earlier on 1st April. This may be as these trees missed the worst of the spring weather, but for the other trees spring events ranged from being 1 to 37 days late!

Shrubs

For a lot of the shrub species I monitored a similar trend was shown as with tree species, being later compared to 2020. For example, elder (Sambucus nigra) leaves first unfurled 34 days later on 18th March, blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) first flowered 17 days later on 23rd March, and hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) first flowered 23 days later on 11th May.

Though half of the shrubs I monitored were later in their spring events, ranging anywhere from 2-34 days later, two species did not completely fit this trend. For lilac (Syringa vulgaris) bud burst occurred 12 days earlier on 24th February, but flowered 17 days later on 2nd May. This was the same for dog rose (Rosa canina), where buds burst 12 days earlier on 22nd February, but first flowered 22 days later on 8th June. For both of these species though, it is the spring events occurring before April that are earlier, as the ones occurring in April and May were not immune to the frosts and heavy rainfall like the other shrubs.

Flowers

For many of our commonly associated spring flower species, there was a little more of a split between appearing earlier or later, but on average they flowered later compared to 2020. Snowdrops (Galanthus spp.) first flowered 15 days later on 18th January, wood anemones (Anemone nemorosa) 8 days later on 30th March, bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) and greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) both 4 days later on 1st April, cowslips (Primula veris) 12 days later on 2nd April, early purple orchid (Orchis mascula) 12 days later on 18th April, wild garlic (Allium ursinum) 14 days later on 20th April, and oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) 16 days later on 3rd June.

The exceptions were a section of earlier flowering species, including primrose (Primula vulgaris) first flowering 27 days earlier on 31st December, lesser celandine (Ficaria verna) 3 days earlier on 15th January, daffodil (Narcissus spp.) 22 days earlier on 19th January, and cuckooflower (Cardamine pratensis) 10 days earlier on 8th April. These flowers would have been influenced by a warmer winter and start to spring, generally flowering before the cold spell in April.

Birds

On average, bird species spring events have also become later this year compared to 2020. I heard my first song thrush (Turdus philomelos) singing 17 days later on 1st January, I saw my first rook (Corvus frugilegus) nests being built 10 days later on 25th February, and I heard my first chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita) on 16th March. April and May events were again influenced, for example I saw my first swallow (Hirundo rustica) 5 days later on 10th April, saw my first house martin (Delichon urbicum) 9 days later on 21st April, heard my first cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) 3 days later on 1st May, and saw my first swift (Apus apus) 10 days later on 16th May.

There were two exceptions though, where I recorded hearing my first blackbird (Turdus merula) singing 13 days earlier on 10th February, and saw my first blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) 8 days earlier on 14th April. These would most likely relate to other influencing factors, such as overwintering in the UK or habitat requirements.

Insects

Compared to previous years, I have still yet to see some species of butterfly that would typically be on the wing by now, such as gatekeeper butterflies (Pyronia tithonus). For the insects I have seen though, again there was a split in event occurrence compared to 2020. For example, I saw my first small tortoiseshell butterfly (Aglais urticae) 2 days later on 7th April, red admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) 26 days later on 7th April, brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) 26 days later on 18th April, and speckled wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria) 52 days later on 13th June.

The early emergers came in the form of my first buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) 14 days earlier on 27th February, peacock butterfly (Aglais io) 5 days earlier on 30th March, orange-tip butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines) 13 days earlier on 31st March, and red-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) 12 days earlier on 19th April. Despite these species appearing earlier in spring, later flowering plants will have had a knock-on effect for them due to a mismatch in timing for food. Only further down the line will we be able to see the extent of this impact.

Summary

This year I have recorded more spring dates than I have done so before, such as alder trees flowering, first yellowhammer singing, and first green-veined white butterfly, which will be useful information during the years to come. This reflects how I have felt more in touch with nature this year even with the unusual weather patterns, such as alot of rain! It became clear as we went through May though, that there was a trend for events happening later and later. This is why I was so interested to see how far this trend actually extended amongst species.

Last year I wrote that spring events are ‘in fact getting later, which will be related to… weather and environmental factors here and further afield’. This year this has turned out to be the case, which shows how climate change is having more of an impact through changes in weather patterns rather than just warmer temperatures. Earlier spring events have been getting earlier with warmer winters, but heavy rainfall and colder starts to spring have been affecting late March to May events most. I wonder now what impact this might have as we move forward, for example greater mismatches in ecological timings.

How to… Make the Most of Autumn’s Bounty

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Leaves rustling beneath my feet, golden, russet, auburn. Crisp, dewy mornings, adorned with misty tendrils and spider’s webs. Hedgerows hung with bright berries, and woodlands dotted with fantastical fungi. Cosy nights in, whilst the night comes alive with Tawnys and foraging mammals. Lazily buzzing insects, murmurations, Red Kites soaring, waders and wildfowl, and endless wonder.

Autumn means different things to different people, but it is deep rooted in the natural world around us. A season of reflection and change, it is the favourite season of many. Some people celebrate turning a new leaf, some the drop in temperature and cosiness that comes with it, some the festivities, and others celebrate the little things, from migrating birds to reconnecting with nature. To all though, it is a bountiful season, marked with plentiful food and the first whispers of winter.

Historically, autumn is associated with harvest time and bringing in the food of the land before winter. From corn dolls to harvest festivals, autumn is symbolic in British tradition and culture. It has been inspiration for poets and writers alike including Keats (‘Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’) and Jane Austen (‘the thousand poetical descriptions extant of autumn’). It is an important time of year to check in with the status of wildlife, whilst also being a time of spiritual significance for many.

As temperatures begin to drop and the leaves begin to change, it is time for us all to get out there, watch amazing sunrises and sunsets, forage for food, and stay connected with mother nature. With autumn being deep rooted in what lays outside our doors, here’s a guide to just some of the important species flourishing in autumn.

Autumn Species

Unless you are 100% sure of what something is and if it is edible, then do not eat it! Also, harvest only what you need and leave the rest for wildlife!

Hazel (Corylus avellana)

  • Fruit: The popular hazelnut, an edible nut that begins with a thick-green husk, before ripening to a brown in autumn
  • For Wildlife: A favourite food of Grey Squirrels, Dormice and Wood Mice, amongst other species, often being cached for winter
  • How to Identify: Circular-shaped leaves with toothed edges and tapering to a point; coppery brown smooth to peeling bark; lemon-yellow catkins and tiny red bud-like flowers in spring
  • Autumn Facts: Until the First World War, Holy Cross Day on the 14th September was traditionally a school holiday, where children would go nut gathering

Bramble (Rubus fruticosus)

  • Fruit: The familiar edible blackberry that begins green, then turns red, before ripening to purple-black in autumn. Blackberry picking is a favourite part of autumn for many!
  • For Wildlife: The berries are a valuable food source for mammals, such as badgers, and small birds, such as Blackcaps
  • How to Identify: Oval-shaped leaves with toothed edges and tapering to a point; prickly and half-evergreen stems; white or pink flowers from spring onwards
  • Autumn Facts: Folklore in Britain dictates that blackberries should not be picked after Old Michaelmas Day (11th October), as the Devil has by then made them unfit to eat

Recipe:

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)

  • Fruit: Hawthorn berries, sometimes known as haws, are edible but their single seed is toxic to humans. They ripen to a bright red, is likened to over-ripe apples in taste, and are used to make jams, jellies and wines
  • For Wildlife: Important source of food during autumn and winter for small mammals and birds, including Blackbirds and Redwings
  • How to Identify: Shiny leaves that are oval-shaped with deeply cut lobes; thorny stems and twigs; white fragant flowers with 5 petals fading to pink
  • Autumn Facts: One of the main uses of Hawthorn is to treat high blood pressure, widening blood vessels and increasing blood flow 

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)

  • Fruit: Produces edible, but tongue-numbing, sloes which are small blackish plums with a bluish powdery surface. Popular to flavour gin!
  • For Wildlife: A feast for birds in autumn and winter that help to disperse the plant’s seeds
  • How to identify: Oval-shaped leaves with toothed edges and tapering to a point; blackish, thorny stems and twigs; snow-white and 5-petalled flowers with red-tipped anthers in the centre
  • Autumn Facts: Sloes are rich in vitamin C and have been used to treat stomach disorders, blood purification, teeth whitening, and even gum problems

Recipe:

Pedunculate Oak (Quercus robur)

  • Fruit: Produces the familiar acorn, with scaly cups and clusters carried on long stalks. Contain tannins that are toxic and bitter to humans, but can be leached out to make edible
  • For Wildlife: An important rich source of food for species such as Jays, Mice, Squirrels and Badgers, often being cached for winter
  • How to Identify: Large, oblong leaves, broader at the base and lobed, turning brown in autumn; massive rugged grey-brown trunk and broad crown; yellow-green catkins in spring
  • Autumn Facts: The most important texts in British history, such as the Magna Carta, were written in Oak gall ink

Apple (Malus domestica)

  • Fruit: Though not native to the UK, domestic Apple trees produce the popular apple which is now cultivated across the globe
  • For Wildlife: Apples are not just for humans, being a popular food source for wildlife too. Birds, such as Thrushes, and mammals, such as Badgers, feast on the fallen and ripening fruit
  • How to Identify: Dark green and typically oval-shaped leaves with toothed edges, and hair underneath; flowers are five-petalled and pink to white in colour
  • Autumn Facts: Most apples are still picked by hand and the world’s top apple producers are China, United States, Turkey, Poland and Italy

Recipe:

Dog Rose (Rosa canina)

  • Fruit: Berries known as hips, that are edible, egg-shaped and bright red. Popularly used for a wide range of food and drink
  • For Wildlife: The hips are eaten by fruit-eating birds, such as Fieldfare and Waxwings, and small mammals, such as Bank Voles
  • How to identify: Dark green and oval-shaped with toothed edges and tapering to a point; arching stems with broad-based strongly hooked prickles; flat and fragrant white or pale pink flowers with large petals and hairless stalks
  • Autumn Facts: It is a valuable medicinal plant, with the hips being made into a vitamin C rich syrup for children (20 times the amount that is in orange juice)

Elder (Sambucus nigra)

  • Fruit: Juicy edible purplish-black berries, known as elderberries, that are used to make a variety of wines, juices, jams and jellies
  • For Wildlife: The berries are eaten by both birds and small mammals, from Whitethroats to Dormice
  • How to identify: Long, dark green oval-shaped leaves with finely toothed edges and tapering to a point; strong smelling bark that is corky and fissured; white, small and fragrant flowers in flat-topped clusters
  • Autumn Facts: One of the most commonly used medicinal plants across the world, from Native Americans using it to treat infections to the Egyptians using it to improve their complexions and heal burns

Recipe:

Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)

  • Fruit: Spindle berries are toxic to humans, with a laxative effect. They are highly distinctive, with 4-lobes and being bright coral-pink
  • For Wildlife: Provide food for a variety of species including mice, birds and even Foxes
  • How to Identify: Shiny oval-shaped leaves with finely toothed edges and tapering to a point that turn distinctively pinkish-red in autumn; deep green 4-sided twigs darkening with age; greenish-white 4-petalled flowers in clusters
  • Autumn Facts: Spindle is at its best and most colourful during autumn with warm leaves and berries

Giving Nature a Home on the Farm

/ Laura Tuke / 2 Comments

‘Give fools their gold, and knaves their power; let fortune’s bubbles rise and fall; who sows a field, or trains a flower, or plants a tree, is more than all’ – John Greenleaf Whittier 

‘Your deepest roots are in nature. No matter who you are, where you live, or what kind of life you lead, you remain irrevocably linked with the rest of creation’ – Charles Cook

My family and I live on a 250 acre mixed dairy farm in the heart of beautiful Dorset, complete with sheep and beef cows. My parents took the farm on from Dorset County Council in 1995, at a time when it was only 50 acres, and have now expanded it to the 250 acres it is today. As long as I can remember, the farm has been my home. It is a part of who I am, providing the backdrop for me to learn about the natural world, to make informed decisions about how I live my life, and to become passionate about conservation. I have my parents to thank for this.

In 2019, the latest State of Nature report showed that agricultural change has been the largest driver of biodiversity loss over the last 45 years in the UK. With 72% of UK land area being used for agriculture and food production, land management changes have had a significant impact on the wildlife that call these areas home. As we now move forward, we need to focus on agriculture, not with contempt and negativity, but with optimism. If we are to continue to produce food in the UK, we need to focus on working with farmers to make farming sustainable, cost-effective, and most importantly with wildlife in mind.

Growing up on a farm, I have always been aware of how agriculture is heavily intertwined with the environment. My Mum and Dad have always believed in their roles as guardians for the wildlife and natural habitats that call our land home, and are dedicated to conserving and increasing biodiversity. Though it can be tough to create a balance, my Dad believes that farming, through careful management, can produce food in an economically sustainable way, whilst supporting and enhancing the natural environment. Here are some of the examples of how my family are successfully working to give nature a home on our farm.

(1) The Bridge Field

Project:

The field is a small, triangular-shaped, 3 acre field, bordered by hedges and a river. It was taken on in 2014 with some other land, and is less ideal for agricultural use due to its shape and often being wet. Hence, it has been left untouched, apart from one late cut of haylage each year and dock management. This year my parents decided to begin the process of restoring the land, with the aim of giving it back to nature.

So far:

  • At the beginning of the year, we bought in and planted 219 native tree and shrub saplings of 9 species, including Goat Willow and Rowan. The hope is to create a rich and valuable habitat for wildlife.
  • We began managing the grass in the field, which is mainly Yorkshire Fog, to increase species composition. The grass has formed a dense stand across the field and is currently excluding nearly all other species.

Next aims:

  • See how the trees and shrubs grow on
  • Plant natural wildflower species using plugs, bulbs and seeds
  • Create a water source, such as a pond
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(2) The Chalk Mound

Project:

Towards the centre of our land you can find a small triangular area of land that is bordered by hedges and a track. My parents took on this area with some other land in 2014, but it was not anything special. In 2017, my Dad decided to use it to make a small piece of chalk habitat, in our clay area, acting as a perfect stopover location between chalk downland to the north and south of us.

So far:

  • We bought in 40 tonnes of quarried chalk and shaped it into a mound which is 10m by 3m, and 2m in height.
  • We planted a selection of plant plugs and seeds gifted to us, ranging from Quaking Grass and Kidney Vetch to Rough Hawkbit and Lady’s Bedstraw.
  • For the first year, the mound was regularly watered as the plant plugs and seeds became established, but after that they were left to grow on, with minimal management.

Next aims:

  • Continue to enjoy the now thriving habitat that is attracting lots of insects, from butterflies to bees
  • Boost numbers of certain species such as Wild Thyme
  • Complete autumn management of the encroaching Yorkshire Fog grass at the mound’s edges

(3) Wildflower Verges and Rough Areas

Project:

As part of managing our land, my Dad leaves areas and verges uncut and able to thrive, providing valuable habitat for wildlife. One of my Dad’s inspirations for doing this is to provide rough grassland habitat for his favourite bird, the Barn Owl. Barn Owls use such areas to hunt, as it provides cover for their rodent prey. It is also great habitat for other species, such as the majestic Brown Hare.

Different forms so far:

  • Fenced off areas to keep livestock out but allow wildlife in.
  • Verges and strips left to grow up and increase in species diversity.
  • Wildflower verges planted to provide food for different species at different times of year.
  • Field margins created, maintained and protected, meaning a field is never worked up to the hedgerows.

Next aims:

  • Allow areas to continue to increase in diversity and composition
  • Continue to create a mosaic of habitats on the land

(4) Trees and Woodlands

Project:

I am a huge fan of trees, and my family are no different. Throughout our land you will find lots of different species, such as Ash, Alder, Wild Cherry and Oaks, varying in size, shape, and age. They play very important and varying roles in the landscape, from singular trees in fields and hedgerows, to the many growing in copses and woodlands around the farm. We now want to continue to preserve them and increase their numbers.

So far:

  • Over many years, we have been planting more trees wherever we can, with this year’s main project being the Bridge Field.
  • We continue to look after and manage the small woodland areas on our land.
  • We are putting up lots of different nest boxes around the farm, from small Tit boxes to larger Owl boxes.

Next aims:

  • Put up more nest boxes, including Little Owl and Kestrel
  • Monitor nest box use each year
  • Allow trees, such as mature Oaks, to naturally age and return to the ground

(5) Hedgerows

Project:

On my family’s land there are a lot of hedgerows, which are a hugely important habitat for a whole host of wildlife. They range in age and composition, including species such as Spindle, Blackthorn, Ash and Dog Rose. They also provide different services, such as food and shelter, throughout the course of a year, for lots of different species.

So far:

  • We carefully manage hedgerows with wildlife in mind each year.
  • Hedgecutting is practiced on a rotational basis and in late winter if the ground holds up. They are only cut by my Dad or brother who are skilled at cutting the hedges correctly and with care.
  • We annually manage and maintain field margins and ditches.
  • Hedgelaying has been used in the past but only when a hedge is in need of restoration.

Next Aims:

  • Maintain the high standard of hedgerows
  • Allow diversity to continue to increase

Future Aims

With 41% of species in decline since 1970, biodiversity loss and the latest State of Nature report cannot be overlooked. Whilst there is still hope that we can bring things back from the brink, and reverse the decline, to do so we need to act now. We need to create more homes for wildlife, protect what is left of our natural environment, and manage land with wildlife in mind.

On the farm this process is in full swing and gaining momentum each year. In this way, we are trying to make our land more wildlife friendly, managing and creating habitats for wildlife. Now, Skylarks can be heard singing all around the farm each morning, Brown Hares are increasing in number, Butterfly and Moths are becoming more species diverse, and Yellowhammers are becoming increasingly common. There are so many more examples from the big to the small, from Hedgehogs to Newts, but my Dad’s favourite has to be his Barn Owls. Over the last few years Barn Owls have made our land their regular home, with 2 Barn Owl pairs successfully breeding last year!

My Dad now wants to continue my Mum’s and his work dedicated to the environment, from helping farmland birds to reducing our carbon footprint. He wants to continue to show how conservation and increasing biodiversity can go hand in hand with conventional farming, allowing food to be produced whilst looking after the environment. A great example of this is the RSPB’s Hope Farm in Cambridgeshire, an arable farm where careful and targeted management is now having results. It makes me optimistic that if we now focus on working with farmers to give nature a home on their farms in the right way, then this could make a real difference to reversing species decline in the future.

Spring 2020: How It Happened

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Walking through the trees, in dappled early morning sunlight, through swathes of brilliant blue. Standing rooted to the spot, hearing the first Chiffchaff, Swallow, Cuckoo. Sitting in breezy sunshine, learning to identify Hawkbits, Vetches and Viper’s-Bugloss. These are just some of the highlights of my spring this year, wild and full of life. With each new day, there was a new wild highlight to be had.

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Following on from my post last week about my favourite photos from this spring (check out Spring 2020: In Photos), I wanted to continue celebrating the lifeline that has been spring and the natural world for me during lockdown. This week I am looking at how spring unfolded this year in my local area and how it looked now the summer is hitting our shores.

Since 2015 I have been writing down a lot of my observations about spring each year. This means I can now look at spring 2020 in light of how the last few years have actually looked and see if anything interesting comes up. Last year I did this in more detail, so for that check out my post called: How Spring Happened 2017-2019.

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So, did a favourite of my mum’s, the Chiffchaff, return by Mother’s Day this year? Did the Oak burst into leaf before the Ash (and so are we in for a splash)? And did the song of the Cuckoo return to my family’s land for another year? As spring now slips into summer, it is time for me to reflect on an extra special spring.

Trees

One of the very first trees to start showing signs of life each spring at my home in Dorset, is the Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum). This year the first buds burst on the 18th of February, which shows a gradual shift forwards over the last few years, being 6 days earlier than last year, and a month earlier than 2018. The first leaf then unfurled on the 10th of March (9 days later than 2019), followed by the first flowers on the 2nd of April (13 days earlier than 2019).

Due to a cold start to spring and a very wet winter, which left the ground cold and waterlogged, Pedunculate (English) Oaks (Quercus robur) were late to make a start, with the first budburst seen on the 2nd of April, 37 days later than 2019. They got going quickly though, with leaves bursting forth by the 8th of April (4 days earlier than 2019) and flowers blooming by the 12th of April (13 days earlier than 2019).

Despite the ground, the trend this year was towards earlier budburst, first leaves and first flowers. Silver Birch (Betula pendula) buds burst on the 15th March, 15 days earlier than 2019; Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) flowered on the 2nd of April, 18 days earlier than 2019; Field Maple (Acer campestre) buds burst on the 5th of April, 13 days earlier than 2019. Grey Willow (Salix cinerea) bucked the trend though, first flowering on the 24th of February, later than last year by 10 days.

This year I added Alder (Alnus glutinosa), Beech (Fagus sylvatica), Lime (Tilia x europaea), Wild Cherry (Prunus avium), and Norway Maple (Acer platanoides) to my spring records, but I did not make observations for Sycamore as in previous years. Lime buds burst on the 14th of March, followed by the first leaf on the 3rd of April; Wild Cherry buds burst on the 15th of March, followed by the first leaf 1 month later and first flower 15 days after that; Norway Maple first flowered on the 21st of March; Alder buds burst on the 6th of April; and Beech buds burst on the 10th of April.

Shrubs

Hazel (Corylus avellana) is one species that flowers early in the year, providing a first hint of colour in a wintry landscape. This year I first saw the male catkins on the 8th of January, followed by the female red flowers on the 1st of February (5 days later than 2019). The first hazel leaf then unfurled 43 days later on the 14th of March.

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) is another species that flowers before it produces its leaves, cloaking hedgerows in drifts of snowy white and accompanying a ‘blackthorn winter’ in early spring. This year the first flowers burst open on the 6th of March, 5 days later than last year, but 24 days earlier than 2018.

After the early flowering species have brought colour to our countryside, Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) is one of the first shrubs to burst into leaf in the hedgerows. This year its buds first burst on the 2nd of March, 5 days later than 2019, followed by the first leaf unfurling 10 days after (28 days earlier than 2019). Their flowers then followed a month after, on the 18th of April, 10 days earlier than 2019.

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A similar trend was shown with Lilac (Syringa vulgaris), where budburst took place on the 8th of March, 13 days later than 2019. The first leaf then unfurled 3 days later too, on the 25th of March, and the first flowers bloomed on the 15th of April, 7 days earlier than 2019.

The flowers of Elder (Sambucus nigra) are well known and iconic in our countryside, popular for making elderflower cordial. This year Elder flowered early, with the first flowers being seen at home on the 25th of April (22 days earlier than 2019). Just like Elder, the Dog Rose (Rosa canina) is another late bloomer, which opened its petals for the first time on the 17th of May this year (11 days earlier than last year).

Flowers 

The very first flowers to be seen blooming in the countryside is the dainty snow white Snowdrop (Galanthus spp.). Over the last few years the drooping heads of snowdrops have been flowering earlier each year. This year though, it appeared only 1 day earlier than 2019, welcoming in the year on the 3rd of January.

Snowdrops were soon followed by other iconic spring species, in the form of the first Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna) on the 18th of January (44 days earlier than 2019), the first Primrose (Primula vulgaris) on the 27th of January (8 days earlier than 2019), and the first Daffodils (Narcissus spp.); on the 2nd of February (the same day as last year!).

As spring went on, the Snowdrops and sunshine yellows were joined by Wood Anemones (Anemone nemorosa) on the 22nd of March, Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) on the 28th of March, Wild Garlic (Allium ursinum) on the 6th of April, Cuckooflowers (Cardamine pratensis) on the 18th of April, and Oxeye Daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare) on the 18th of May, all occurring 6-17 days earlier than last year.

This year I also included three new flowering species to my spring records: Cowslips (Primula veris), Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea), and Early Purple Orchids (Orchis mascula). I saw the first Cowslip flower on the 20th of March, the first Greater Stitchwort on the 28th of March, and the first Early Purple Orchid on the 6th of April.

Grasses

This year I was so busy in May and the first half of June that I completely overlooked the flowering of 3 common perennial grass species in my local area: Cock’s-foot (Dactylis glomerata), Timothy (Phleum pratense), and Yorkshire Fog (Holcus lanatus). I did though catch Meadow Foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis) flowering, which first occurred on the 22nd of April (23 days earlier than 2019).

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Birds

With the start of every new year, I begin to keep my eye out for the start of the Rooks (Corvus frugilegus) nesting in the bare and skeletal forms of large oak trees near my home. This year they kept me waiting awhile though, with the first signs of nest building appearing on the 15th of February, 17 days later than 2019.

Unlike the start of the Rooks nesting though, the start of male Song Thrushes (Turdus philomelos) singing crept even earlier than last spring. This was 13 days earlier in fact, with me hearing my first on the 15th of December in 2019! This was not reflected by Blackbirds (Turdus merula) though, as I heard my first male singing on the 23rd of February, 17 days later than 2019.

One of my favourite first signs that spring has begun has to be the return of the Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita). This year they returned to my home in Dorset on the 1st of March, 17 days earlier than 2019.

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The glorious return of the Chiffchaffs were then eagerly followed by the first Swallow (Hirundo rustica) on the 5th of April (1 day later than 2019), the first House Martin (Delichon urbicum) on the 12th of April (12 days earlier than 2019), the first Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) on the 22nd of April (11 days later than 2018), and the first Swift (Apus apus) on the 6th of May (19 days earlier than 2018). A Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) did make its exciting return to my family’s land too, which I heard for the first time on the 28th of April (24 days earlier than last year).

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Insects 

This year the majority of the insects I observed, emerged later than they did last year in 2019. I saw my first Brimstone Butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) on the 24th of March, my first Peacock Butterfly (Aglais io) on the 4th of April, my first Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly (Aglais urticae) on the 5th of April, my first Orange-Tip Butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines) on the 13th of April, my first Red-Tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) on the 1st of May, and my first queen Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) on the 7th of May, with all ranging anywhere between 4 and 37 days later in date than last year.

The ones that did not follow this pattern though, were the Speckled Wood Butterfly (Pararge aegeria) first seen on the same day as last year on the 22nd of April, and the Red Admiral Butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) that was first seen 29 days earlier on the 22nd of April. This year I also added Buff-Tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) to my observations, seeing the first at home on the 13th of March.

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This Year

This year it has definitely been an interesting and joyful experience to watch how spring unfolded. It started with early signs during the winter, before arriving with a blaze of glory in March.

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This last winter was a warm, wet and windy one, which left the ground cold and waterlogged for quite a while into spring. A number of species such as Oak trees struggled with this, but for many it did not stop them from emerging on time or earlier, such as snowdrops and field maples. This variation continued with bird species, some arriving and beginning breeding earlier and some later. For a lot of the insect species though, they emerged late, which will have had a lot to do with the less than ideal weather conditions this spring, for example frosts in April. Thus, how spring is changing year-to-year definitely has a lot to do with changing weather conditions.

So as spring fades to summer heat, I can now say that the Chiffchaff made its return to the British Isles by Mother’s Day, the Oak burst into leaf before the Ash (and so we are in for a splash!), and a Cuckoo made its return to my home. It has definitely been a great spring this year!

How to… Identify Hedgerow Plants

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Whizzing past our car windows, naturally bordering our fields and gardens, or providing a home for wildlife. Often going unseen and unnoticed, hedgerows are a widespread and overlooked habitat right on our doorsteps. Bountiful and bursting with life, each hedge is unique from the next, with a story to be told and a world to be explored.

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From butterflies and birds to hedgehogs and dormice, an incredible number of species rely on the plants in our hedges for their survival, such as food, shelter, and corridors along which to travel. They do not just play a role for wildlife though, holding value in the wider landscape, providing us with services such as stopping soil erosion and buffering pollution. In this way, hedgerows have been important for humans and wildlife alike for hundreds of years!

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The first hedgerows can be dated back to the Bronze Age, when farmers cleared woodland to grow crops, leaving carefully maintained strips to act as boundaries. Some of these strips of ancient woodland can still be found today! Since then hedges have grown in popularity, but following the Second World War, many were ripped up to provide more space to grow food and for development. Despite approximately half of all hedges in Britain being lost during this time, thankfully the remaining were given protected status in 1997.

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The hedgerows rolling across our countryside today are a piece of history, full of life and colour and provide us with a whole host of resources. So, why not try and see this for yourself, and take a moment to see what you can find in a hedgerow local to you? To help, here’s my simple guide to identifying some of our iconic hedgerow species.

Hedgerow Plants

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)Blackthorn

  • Family: Rose – related to fruiting trees such as cherries and plums
  • Size: Up to 4m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Blackish and thorny
  • Leaves: 2-4cm long, oval-shaped tapering to a point with toothed margins
  • Flowers: Snow-white and 5-petalled with red-tipped anthers in the centre. Flowers late March-April, appearing BEFORE the leaves
  • Seeds: Produces fruit (sloes) which are small blackish plums with a bluish powdery surface. Tongue-numbingly tart to eat but popular to flavour gin
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout most of Britain
  • Fun Facts: Blackthorn, long used for making items such as walking and riding sticks, has long been associated with witchcraft

Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)Spindle

  • Indicator of an ancient hedgerow
  • Family: Staff-vine
  • Size: Up to 9m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Bark and 4-sided twigs are deep green, darkening with age
  • Leaves: 3-13cm long, shiny, mid-green, oval-shaped tapering to a point with finely toothed margins, and turning distinctively pinkish-red in autumn
  • Flowers: Greenish-white and 4-petalled in small overlooked stalked clusters. Flowers May-June
  • Seeds: Distinctive 4-lobed bright coral-pink berries
  • Range: Less common in Scotland and Ireland, found throughout England and Wales, but most frequent in the south
  • Fun Facts: The hard dense wood of spindle was used from ancient times to make spindles, whereas the leaves and seeds were powdered to dust on the skin of children to drive away lice

Cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris) Cow parsley

  • Family: Carrot – related to species such as parsnips and poison hemlock
  • Size: ~1m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Stems are hollow and furrowed, often becoming purple
  • Leaves: Fresh green, 3-pinnate, and sharply cut
  • Flowers: White, forming clusters known as umbels. Flowers April-June
  • Seeds: Round, smooth and broad-based
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain and strongly associated with hedgerows
  • Fun Facts: Its folk-name is ‘Queen Anne’s lace’. This comes from a folk tale which said that the flowers would bloom for Queen Anne and her ladies in waiting and reflect the delicate lace they wore

Common Hazel (Corylus avellana)Hazel

  • Family: Birch – related to species such as silver birch, alders and hornbeams
  • Size: Up to 8m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Bark coppery brown, smooth and tending to peel
  • Leaves: 5-12cm long and almost circular with sawtooth edges
  • Flowers: Male= lemon-yellow catkins; Female= Tiny and bud-like with red styles. Flowers January-March BEFORE the leaves
  • Seeds: An edible nut encased at first in a thick-green husk before ripening in autumn
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Hazel rods have historically been used for a range of purposes from hurdles and coracles for fishing to house building and basketwork

Dog Rose (Rosa canina)

  • Family: Rose
  • Size: Up to 4m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Arching stems with broad-based strongly hooked prickles
  • Leaves: Dark green and oval-shaped tapering to a point with toothed edges
  • Flowers: Flat and fragrant white or pale pink, with large petals and hairless stalks. Flowers June-July
  • Seeds: Fruit, known as a hip, that is egg-shaped and bright red
  • Range: Most common and variable wild rose, widespread throughout Britain, but most frequent in the south
  • Fun Facts: Adopted as a symbol of the British monarchy and England since the reign of Henry VII. It is also a valuable medicinal plant, with its hips being made into a Vitamin C rich syrup for children

Field Rose (Rosa arvensis)

  • Compared to the Dog Rose, the Field Rose is shorter, growing up to about 2m, with slightly smaller, cup-shaped creamy-white flowers that flower about a fortnight later, from June-July. Also, the flowers’ sepals are often purplish, the styles are in a column, and the hips are smaller and often more round. The Field Rose’s range does not stretch as far north as that of the Dog Rose, being absent from Scotland

Roses

Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)Hawthorn

  • Family: Rose
  • Size: Up to 10m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Very thorny and hairless
  • Leaves: Leafing in April, the leaves are shiny and roughly oval-shaped with 3-5 deeply cut lobes
  • Flowers: White fragrant (sickly sweet) flowers with pink/purple anthers, only one style and 5 petals. Become deeper pink as they fade
  • Seeds: Fruit, known as haws, have a single seed and ripen to a bright red
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Hawthorn is linked to Christian, pagan and medieval rites, and has ancient associations with May Day. Bringing hawthorn blossom in your house was believed to bring in illness and death upon you

Elder (Sambucus nigra)Elder

  • Family: Previously in the honeysuckle family , but now reclassified in moschatel
  • Size: Up to 10m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Strong smelling with corky and fissured bark
  • Leaves: Dark green, pinnate with 5-7 leaflets
  • Flowers: White, small and fragrant in flat-topped clusters with yellow anthers. Flowers May-August
  • Seeds: Produces a juicy edible purplish-black berry
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Has many uses from wines and jams, to toys and dyes. Also, it was believed that planting an elder tree near your house would keep the Devil away

Field Maple (Acer campestre)Field Maple

  • Family: Soapberry – related to horse chestnut and lychee
  • Size: Up to 25m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Twigs downy
  • Leaves: Much smaller than sycamore at 4-7cm long and wide, rather bluntly lobed (3-5), and dark green. Turn distinctively amber in autumn
  • Flowers: Yellowish-green and carried in upright spikes. Flowers May-June after the leaves
  • Seeds: The seeds, known as keys, are winged and paired forming an angle of 180 degrees
  • Range: Common in England and East Wales, but less common elsewhere
  • Fun Facts: Wood used for furniture veneers, wall panelling, and violin-making, but previously used to make domestic utensils such as drinking bowls. As with all maple trees, the sap of the field maple can be used to make maple syrup

Bramble (Rubus fruticosus)Bramble

  • Family: Rose – closely related to species such as raspberries and dewberries
  • Size: Up to 4m tall or long
  • Stems and twigs: Prickly and half-evergreen
  • Leaves: 3-5 broad, toothed leaflets
  • Flowers: White or pink and flowers from May onwards
  • Seeds: Fruit is the familiar edible blackberry that starts green, then turns red, finally ripening to purple-black
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Folklore dictates that blackberries should not be picked after Old Michaelmas Day in October, as the Devil has sullied them. Brambles were also previously planted on graves to stop sheep grazing

Pedunculate or English oak (Quercus robur)

  • Family: Beech – related to species such as beech and sweet chestnut
  • Size: Up to 40m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Massive rugged grey-brown trunk and broad crown
  • Leaves: 10-12cm long, oblong, usually broader at the base and lobed, turning brown in autumn
  • Flowers: Yellow-green catkins flowering April-June
  • Seeds: Produces the familiar acorn, with scaly cups and clusters carried on long stalks
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Druids in Celtic Britain held the oak tree sacred, with the oak becoming an English national symbol of strength

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Sessile oak (Quercus petraea)

  • Differs to Pedunculate Oak in that the leaves taper to an unlobed base and have long stalks. Also, the clustered acorns are almost stalk-less with downy cups. Prefers more acid soils and is more common in the West of Britain

Oak Trees

Other species

  • There are lots of flowering species to also be found at the base of hedges. To help with identifying these, check out my ‘How to… Identify Woodland Flowers’ guide, to help with crossover species, such as bluebells, primroses, and moschatel

All photos and drawings are my own

How spring happened 2017-2019

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Over the last few years, I have taken part in recording how spring has unfurled at my home in Dorset, for a citizen science scheme. As at the end of each spring I upload my results to an online site, in 2017 I decided that I should be writing my observations down for myself in my wildlife journal, making it easy to look back on them in the future.

Now I have recorded dates for many different wildlife spring events, from trees coming into leaf to the return of migrants, for 2017, 2018, and 2019. So here, I want to take a moment to look back at these and reflect on what they may show about spring and its current emergence, and if there is anything interesting we can take from this.

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Trees

In my local area, you can find a large variety of native and non-native tree species. Over the last 3 years, I have consistently made observations for 5 tree species: ash, sycamore, horse chestnut, pedunculate oak and silver birch.

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For the 5 tree species, some similar patterns can be observed from my recorded spring dates for the last 3 years. In 2018, a colder winter was experienced, with heavy snowfalls taking place in January, February and March. Evidently this had an effect on the timing of budburst, first leaf and first flowering for tree species, in comparison to the year before.

Budburst was 36 days later for ash trees (27/04/18), 10 days later for sycamore trees (08/04/18), 19 days later for horse chestnut trees (20/03/18), 21 days later for oak trees (18/04/18), and 26 days later for silver birch trees (12/04/18). The same amount of lateness was also seen with the first leaf and first flowering for these tree species in 2018.

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Due to the weather of spring 2018, this meant that when looking at how this year’s spring unfurled (2019) in comparison to last year, predictably budburst, first leaf and first flowering took place 4-53 days earlier than 2018. When comparing 2019 with 2017 though, I am able to get an idea of the average trend for the three years. For example, ash and silver birch events are getting later, as are horse chestnut flowering and sycamore first leaf. Sycamore, horse chestnut and oak generally show a trend though of spring events getting earlier, from a couple of days to a month.

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Shrubs

For shrubs, the selection I have been observing during spring each year are: blackthorn, dog rose, elder, hawthorn and lilac. From 2017-2019, a similar trend was predominantly observed in these species as with tree species.

In comparison to 2017, blackthorn first flowering was 14 days later in 2018 (30/03/18), elder budburst was 9 days later (13/03/18), elder first leaf was 23 days later (30/03/18) , hawthorn budburst was 33 days later (02/04/18), hawthorn first leaf was 6 days later (08/04/18), and lilac first flowering was 27 days later (07/05/18).

Then when looking at 2019, spring dates were earlier in comparison to 2018, with blackthorn budburst, first leaf and first flowering being 20, 9 and 29 days earlier, dog rose budburst, first leaf and first flowering being 22 and 29 days earlier, elder budburst, first leaf and first flowering being 9, 24 and 8 days earlier, hawthorn budburst and first flowering being 36 and 13 days earlier, and lilac first flowering being 14 days earlier.

Also, similarly to tree species, blackthorn and elder both showed that from 2017 to 2019 spring events have become earlier on average. Hawthorn and lilac showed the opposite trend though, with hawthorn first leaf and first flowering becoming later over the 3 years on average, if only by 7-13 days.

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Flowers 

In comparing spring between 2017, 2018 and 2019, it is evident that for many plant species the same trends have been shown from year to year. This is not true for all though, as between bluebells, cuckooflowers, lesser celandines, oxeye daisies, snowdrops and wood anemones, flowering times varied from being later in 2018 and earlier in 2019, to being earlier overall, or being similar overall.

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  • Bluebells flowered 17 days later in 2018 (13/04/18) than 2017, and then 10 days earlier in 2019 compared to 2018. From 2017 to 2019, this was 7 days later overall.

  • Cuckooflowers flowered 16 days later in 2018 (20/04/18) than 2017, and then 12 days earlier in 2019 compared to 2018. From 2017 to 2019, this was 4 days later overall.
  • Lesser celandines flowered 5 days earlier from 2017 to 2018 (24/02/18), followed by another 13 days earlier in 2019.

  • Snowdrops flowered 10 days earlier from 2017 to 2018 (10/01/18), followed by another 7 days earlier in 2019.
  • Wood anemones flowered around a similar date at the beginning of March each year.

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  • Oxeye daisies flowered around a similar date at the end of May each year.

Grasses

Grass species also showed a differing trend to tree and shrub species for 2017-2019, with a united pattern of flowering later each year. When observing spring events with grasses, I observe from year to year 4 species: cocksfoot, meadow foxtail, timothy, and yorkshire fog.

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Only timothy had observations made for 2017, and so in comparing with 2018, it was found to have flowered 18 days later (18/05/18). This is in line with comparisons between 2018 and 2019, where it was found that cocksfoot flowered 4 days later (30/05/19), meadow foxtail flowered 14 days later (15/05/19), timothy flowered 23 days later (10/06/19), and yorkshire fog flowered 14 days later (12/06/19).

Birds

Though I have started increasing my recordings of different bird species during spring, I only have records for 2+ years for rooks, blackcaps, chiffchaffs, house martins, song thrushes, cuckoos, and swallows.

  • Following the first snowfall of the year, rooks were first seen to be nest building 16 days earlier in 2018 (04/02/18) than 2017, but with no snow, this was 11 days later in 2019.
  • Blackcaps returned to my local area 12 days later in 2018 (11/04/18) than 2017.
  • Chiffchaffs returned 13 days later in 2018 (26/03/18) than 2017, following the last of the snow and cold weather. Consequently, in 2019 they returned 8 days earlier than 2019 (15/02/19), closer to the 2017 date.
  • House martins returned 12 days later in 2018 (25/05/18) than 2017, whilst being 31 days earlier in 2019 than 2018.
  • Male song thrushes were first heard singing in 2018 on 28/01/18, 8 days earlier than 2017. In 2019, this occurred a lot earlier though, 30 days earlier, falling on 29/12/18.
  • Male cuckoo heard calling at a similar time at the end of May in 2018 and 2019.
  • Swallows returned to my local area at a similar time at the end of March/beginning of April in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Insects

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In line with tree and shrub species, the first sightings recorded each spring of insects followed a general pattern of emerging later in 2018 than 2017, and earlier in 2019 than 2018. This was true for:

  • Brimstone butterflies – 13 days later on 14th April 2018 and 47 days earlier on 26th February 2019
  • Peacock butterflies – 14 days later on 20th April 2018 and 26 days earlier on 25th March 2019
  • Small tortoiseshell butterflies – 31 days later on 26th April 2018 and 25 days earlier on 1st April 2019
  • Speckled wood butterflies – 20 days later on 26th April 2018 and 4 days earlier on 22nd April 2019
  • Orange tip butterflies – 28 days later on 4th May 2018 and 33 days earlier on 1st April 2019
  • Red admiral butterflies – 27 days earlier on 22nd April 2019 
  • 7-spot ladybirds – 19 days later on 25th April 2018
  • Queen wasps – 47 days earlier on 31st March 2019
  • Red-tailed bumblebees – 13 days earlier on 21st April 2019

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Summary

With my love of spring, each year I have enjoyed recording the dates of when things happen during spring, such as the first swallow, first leaf or first elder flower. It has been satisfying now to be able to take a moment to put a few of my records together and take a look at how spring has unfurled over the last few years and what this could mean.

For some species, events are getting earlier, probably due to warmer temperatures earlier on in the year and during the winter before. For others, they are in fact getting later, which will be related to other weather and environmental factors here and further afield. Either way, the ‘norm’ is changing and it will be interesting to see how this could progress over the next few years to come.

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Looking back at my highlights of spring 2019

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Spring

Though I love the sunshine of summer, changing colours of autumn, and crisp days of winter, spring is by far my most favourite of seasons. Spring each year brings with it new life and a vibrancy that always lifts my spirits and makes me look forward to the rest of the year ahead.

Unfortunately for the last few years, I have felt like I have missed out on being able to fully appreciate this time of year, due to concentrating on my degrees. This year though, working in a seasonal outdoors job, things have been very different. In fact, I have been privileged enough to be able to fully immerse myself in the changing of seasons and blazing emergence of spring. Thus, I now want to take a moment to look back and reflect on my favourite moments of the amazing spring that is now slipping us by.

  1. Winter warmers

Spring began for me even before the season had started this year. With a cold winter in Dorset being experienced, my spirits were lifted at the beginning of the year with the first sprouting of snowdrops in my garden and surrounding countryside. These little white beauties reminded me that winter would not last for forever.

Snowdrops

I was then given similar reminders with the arrival of sunshine yellow hazel catkins in February, brightening a grey and imposing landscape, and the melodic songs of male song thrushes and blackbirds, especially singing to me at dusk each day. The increasing activity of plants and animals were comfortingly hinting at what was to come.

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2. Signals of spring

Following winter reminders of spring, there was nothing better than the arrival of the first real signals of its arrival. Three of my favourite standouts this year began with the blooming of vivid white and yellow flowers across the countryside, the most notable being daffodils, primroses, lesser celandines, pussy willow and sycamore. This was accompanied by the emergence of yellow-green male brimstone butterflies fluttering across the fields and along the hedgerows.

One of my most anticipated first signs of returning spring though, was the onomatopoeic call of returning chiffchaffs. These incredible small migrants, and now a resident British species, have such an iconic song that just sings that ‘spring is here’ for me. Thus, nothing brightens my days more than seeing these small birds flitting between trees and shrubs and hearing ‘chiff chaff, chiff chaff’ wherever go.

Sycamore leaves

3. A new favourite

Often from year to year I have very similar favourite moments of spring, such as the bud burst of oak and horse chestnut trees or the return of nesting barn swallows. This year for me though I got to add a new one to my highlights.

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When the first signs of spring began to creep back in this year, our hedgerows looked rather bare and empty in their skeletal form. This made it all the more noticeable when in March the hedgerows around me became awash with white, like rolling waves. Some years the flowering blackthorn does not make a full show, but this year it was rather spectacular, bringing fresh colour to the countryside around me. It even became a favourite for me to dabble with up close plant photography with my brand-new camera. Here are some of my very first photos!

4. Something special

Another of my favourite moments this spring included an additional first for me. Where many naturalists in the UK may have had spring encounters with this bird species before, previously my experience has been limited to hearing one call a year if I am lucky. This year though, I had the pleasure of being able to get well acquainted with this parasitic migrant, the common cuckoo (red-listed in the UK).

It has to be said that the male cuckoo has a song that is traditionally iconic of spring time, but as the years have been rolling on, this is has become a scarcer occurrence for many. That is why this spring I was overjoyed when most days the song of a number of male cuckoos became the soundtrack of my work life. It has been really special to become so used to this sound, and it has filled me with such pleasure on a day-to-day basis. So all I can say is that I hope I get this privilege again in the future!

Woodland

5. The best of all

For me, though I love all that spring has to hold, I cannot help but have the same favourite highlight each year. With the beginning of new life during spring, one of my favourite parts of this is our woodlands becoming lush with an assortment of plant species. The one species that stands out during this time though, is characterised by its colourful purple flowers carpeting woodland floors.

The sight of flowering bluebells at their peak is an incredible one, which is a feeling shared by many people. It is hard to pinpoint why this is so, but it may be due to how the deep purple carpet totally contrasts with its bright green surroundings, or for the sweet heady scent of native bluebells. Whatever the reason though, they always fill me with joy with every sight, along with the other flowers that are dotted amongst them, such as stitchwort and wood anemone.

With the return of the bluebells this year, it can be said that they really did not disappoint me. Many a day I took a turn through my local woods and took a moment to look back at all the memories past walks amongst the purple flowers hold for me. For example, I have always enjoyed taking a four-legged furry friend to the woods with me to responsibly enjoy this setting too.

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So, as quick as the bluebells came and put on their show this year, they also died away. I cannot help but feel a little bit sad when this happens every year, but with their exit, this signals the start of the next season and that one has to offer.

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Winter into spring: March on the farm

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

With the month of March comes the arrival of spring, symbolising the start of another year’s new growth and a transition following the bleaker winter months. March has often been associated with the saying ‘comes in like a lion, goes out like a lion’, referring to the weather. This was true about this March, with wild weather and strong winds featuring at the beginning of March, before the weather becoming more calm as the month progressed.

As traditional, during March, wildfowl made a sudden departure, fox cubs were born, buzzards established breeding orders, hawthorn and elder broke into leaf, small tortoiseshells emerged, nest building began, small warblers such as chiffchaffs returned from Africa, crocuses flowered, summer visitors began to return, and winter migrants began to migrate to their summer territories.

Though primroses, daffodils, celandines and blackthorn first flowered during February, it was nice to see all these flowers still blooming throughout March. Song birds during March could be heard singing, and the first woodland flowers began to come out at the end of March. The traditional ‘Mad’ March hares also made an appearance, with females resisting the advances of amorous males.

The beginning of Spring is symbolised by lengthening days and increasing temperatures. At the end of March, with the clocks going forward an hour, lengthening days were fulfilled, but this year the increasing temperatures did not make an appearance during March. After the stormier weather at the beginning of March, a cold spell set in, halting the advancement of Spring. This was symbolised with sycamore and silver birch being late coming into leaf, wood anemones and ferns being late to come out in the woods, and Blackbirds nesting late.

On the farm, new lives began during March. Aberdeen Angus suckler cows gave birth to their calves and three of our four mules gave birth to lambs, highlighting one of my favourite parts of the farming calendar.

Taken by Marilyn Tuke (18/03/16)
Taken by Marilyn Tuke (18/03/16)
26/03/16
26/03/16

My highlight of March was beginning to use my new Bushnell camera trap to photograph and video the wildlife on the farm, including the local badgers.

25th-26th March
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27th March
28th-29th March
29th March
29th-30th March
29th-30th March