NATURE TABLE EXPLORER

On a Sunny morning four nature table explorers , Paul,Lesley, Tim and me all set off on a bluebell adventure.

Leaving Northampton behind we drove west towards Daventry, the landscape changes and becomes more rolling.A left turn and we were soon at the village of Everdon but another left turn took us up the hill to the woods called Everdon Stubbs.

These broadleaf woods with areas of open glades , coppiced trees and large older trees is carpeted in beautiful bluebells ( Hyacinthoides non-scripta)

There is something almost magical about bluebell woods, the colour , the scent and the birds flying and singing in a paradise.

Here is a little taste of that paradise so you can hear the birds and imagine you are there.50 percent of the world population of bluebells grow in the U.K. in one wood there are millions of bulbs. Bluebells are an indicator species for ancient woods. They provide nectar for bees, hoverflies and butterflies.

At this wood I really love the open glade areas , the bluebells grow in the grasses.

The team of four explorers enjoyed meandering through the scented paths and discovered other flowers amongst the bluebells.

There was a lot of large patches of Great Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) these patches have a frothy appearance made up of white flowers. They have a lot of descriptive common names; wedding cakes and daddy’s shirt buttons are two I rather liked.

This is not a great photo but it does show how the Stitchwort grows amongst the bluebells.

Another flower in large numbers through the wood is the Yellow Archangel (Latium galeobdolon) These flowers will continue to bloom as the bluebells fade. It has leaves similar in shape to a nettle but has no sting … it is angelic,

The next beauty in this pageant in the wood is red campion , we have always called it bachelors button (Silene dioica). An interesting fact about this plant is that it is dioecious, this means that there are Male plants and female plants.

There are some fantastic stands of red campion in the road verges as well as the woods at the moment. They are tall attractive perennials with flowers providing nectar for pollinators.

This was a kaleidoscope of a walk mainly blue but punctuated with white, yellow and pink all alongside the fantastic young greens of the trees like this young sweet chestnut.

A great walk , these woods really lift your spirits. I say EXPLORE MORE !