NATURE TABLE EXPLORER

In the city of London today , discovered sections of the old medieval walls surrounded by modern building with great plants growing on them.

London Plane trees looking brilliant against the blue sky and carpets of bluebells in bun hill fields, a cemetery where people have been buried for a 1000 years . Amazing what you can stumble across. This cemetery with the graves of John Bunyan and William Blake and 123,000 others was an oasis of quiet and bluebells, stitchwort and bachelors buttons it was lovely.

I have found a brilliant little table for finds and have made table number one. This has mainly things from previous trips. My plan is that each week there will be finds from the week plus one special ‘treasure’.Each item will have a label and maybe some interesting facts. This will probably evolve over time.

I have an email address for this site ,naturetableexplorer@yahoo.com ,it would be great if you take a photo of your finds in the week and I can share some on the site and where they were found. the

The email is naturetableexplorer@yahoo.com

Send your pictures and become a nature table explorer

The cowslips are amazing this year. In the Forest of Dean and around Monmouth they were making carpets in fields and large splashes of colour along roads.

On the road across the Cotswolds at Notgrove there is an ancient burial mound and long barrow. This is at a high point with brilliant views and is very atmospheric. Today it was covered in dancing cowslips looking beautiful.

I’m in Monmouth in weather ducks are enjoying , if you have waterproof feathers it’s a good day.

The River is rushing through under the ancient bridge and the ducks are hitching a ride .. rather like a kayaker!

The bluebells are not in flower in the woods in the Forest of Dean yet. There are bluebells on the road verges and banks along with beautiful cowslips and drifts of milk maids.

After drawing a blank looking for a table at home I’m now in the beautiful Forest of Dean on expedition for the perfect table. Mum and Dad will be leading this trip to known haunts full of treasures .. hopefully !

By this evening I should be in procession of the perfect table and had a great day exploring the woods.

On another note I’m always on the look out for a wild boar , still not seen one . I might go out a dusk with Dad on a Boar Hunt !!

Noticed this growing through tarmac .. amazing.

A chilly walk in Greenwich park on Sunday,it was full of beautiful trees. The horse chestnut candelabra flowers were all out and looking brilliant. We were looking out for the parrots that fly freely in the park. A very loud chaffinch, but no parrots . We walked under the Thames through a foot tunnel to Island gardens where sitting on an aerial on someone’s roof was a very noisy parrot who then flew off with two squawking buddies.. I imagine complaining to each other about the cold ! No pictures of fast moving parrots but there is one of the chaffinch who was singing his heart out.

I know snails have featured a lot in the last week but they have definitely caught my eye. I thought I had posted this but must have forgotten to publish. On a damp evening about 8 pm the trees were literally covered in climbing banded snails .

The Genus name for all forget me nots ( there are a lot) is myosotis, this is a Greek word meaning literally mouse ear. This refers to the shape of the tiny petals. Rather nice , however it’s rare to see a mouse with blue or pink ears!!

This is not strictly wild flowers. I have seen forget me nots out at the moment but these were so gorgeous today in a very rainy and wet Northampton I had to share them . Every time I see a forget me not it makes me think of the poem below , this was in my favourite poetry book I had for my 7th birthday bought from a brilliant shop on Hastings seafront that isn’t there anymore.

These little flowers certainly raise your spirt on a dull day !