Symbols

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.

How to… Bring Nature Into Your Home This Christmas

/ Laura Tuke / 1 Comment

Christmas for me, alongside being all about family, friendship and feeling grateful, is deep rooted in nature. This is not unusual though, as people have been taking direction from nature during mid-winter celebrations for thousands of years. From the Romans decorating their homes with greenery to the Victorian Christmas tree, from pagans to Christians, the inspiration for how Christmas looks today has often come from the world outside our doors. For me, every year during December, I also bring nature into my home in the form of plant life. But why and how?

Plants and Christmas

During the winter and Christmas period, it’s popular for evergreens to be brought into our homes to be used as decorations. This practice has been observed for thousands of years, evolving but often holding the same symbolism and meaning. Evergreens are a traditional symbol of everlasting life due to their longevity, and were worshipped by pagans as symbols of immortality and everlasting light, being used to ward off illness and evil spirits. The bright natural colours of evergreens have also long provided inspiration for many, and still do during the cold, dark days of winter. They are a symbol of celebration and remind us that the days of spring will return in time.

Some Christmas examples include:

Mistletoe – A long history in Britain from being sacred to the druids and warding off evil spirits during the Middle Ages to symbolising healing, shelter and fertility. It was once banned from Christian churches due to its pagan links. The Victorians gave the plant its modern tradition of being hung in a doorway to kiss under, though the exact reason why we do this is still unknown.

Holly – Long associated with fertility, protection and eternal life in Britain, due to being able to withstand harsh conditions. It was originally brought into people’s homes to ward off witches and malevolent spirits during the dark months, before being adopted by the Church to symbolise Jesus’ sacrifice (prickles= thorns and berries= spilt blood).

Poinsettas – Native to Mexico and brought over from America, the flowers have become a meaningful symbol of Christmas. Their star shape is thought to symbolise the Star of Bethlehem, and the colours either purity or the spilt blood of Christ. For some, Poinsettas also symbolise new life.

Ivy – Symbolises everlasting life, resurrection, rebirth, and the coming of spring. During Christmas time, Ivy is closely associated with Holly, being once considered a female plant whereas Holly was the matching male plant. It was said that whichever of these two species was brought into the house first during the winter, would predict whether a man or woman would be in charge of the house for the next year. Now popular at Christmas, Ivy was once banished from homes by the Christian church due to its ability to grow in the shade, giving it associations with secrecy and debauchery.

How to make your own Christmas decorations

Bringing nature into your home is a great way to brighten things up and add a bit of colour to your Christmas festivities. Though it is understandable if you feel daunted by the prospect of turning your hand to making your very own decorations for the first time, such as a wreath or centrepiece, it is actually a simple and a great way to create decorations personal to you. Using natural materials can be a fun and easy way to do this, so why not try something new and have a go! For a little inspiration and some tips, here are some of the decorations that I put together for my family home each year, including this year.

Popularly Used Species

  • Holly – With and without berries
  • Ivy
  • Rose hips
  • Teasels – Some sprayed with non-toxic paint

Centrepiece and Mantlepiece Decorations

For my centrepiece and mantelpiece decorations, every year I simply use a couple of small metal buckets with a bit of oasis in them. My squares of oasis are reused again and again each year, so if you are starting out it is better to use a non-toxic, biodegradable alternative that will not harm the environment.

To begin putting together one of my Christmas arrangements, I start with placing a candle at the centre (though it is simply for decoration). I then build up from there, beginning with a few Teasels around or behind the candle, then adding Holly with and without berries, Rose hips, and Ivy. You can arrange the greenery however you want and add what you like. It is a bit of fun of course!

Basic Wreath

A wreath’s circular shape has long been seen as a symbol of eternal love and rebirth. They can first be traced back to early Roman times, where wreaths were made and given during the festival of Saturnalia each year (check out my blog post: The Twists of Christmas Traditions for more information).

To begin my wreath, I use a basic wooden wreath as my base and work from there. I usually start by wrapping Holly around the base and adding extra Holly with and without berries. This year I was happy with just Holly, but other years I have added Ivy and other greenery, and decorations such as ribbon. Less is more though, and watch out for the Holly’s spiky prickles!

Vase Arrangements

To finish my Christmas decorations, I like to use whatever greenery I have left to create some simple vase arrangements in fun vases. Teasels and Ivy are a great mix for this, adding a little colour and decoration to any room.

Warning

When collecting your greenery, pick only what you need, especially when picking plants with berries, such as Holly. These berries are a source of food for animals during the winter, so it is important that we leave some for them too.

Stay safe and Merry Christmas!