not quite Provence

a field full of sunflowers in Venterdon, looking south towards the church, and Kit Hill in the distance. And the lane in its autumnal livery against a blue sky providing another example of Nature's painting.

honestly autumn is here

the seed pod of honesty (we expect lots more next year)

 the clash of colour of spindle berries, according to Flora Britannica one of the few violent colour clashes in our native flora

and our rowan tree bulging with berries

little beauties

some eyebright (and canine hoof) still flowering, and a little footbridge across the stream below Old Mill, near Luckett

not much colour now

all of a sudden the colour has gone out of the meadows which have become a sea of brown knapweed seed heads and the occasional flash of creamy meadowsweet and pinkish white angelica. Nevertheless the goldfinches are gathering into small flocks or charms and will feed on the seed heads through the rest of the year.

Cassie

not long to go now

on sad days

there are no poppies here, but these wild flowers on the rocky path up hill can stand in their stead, and there is light ahead.

handel bars?

Thus at the flaming forge of life
  Our fortunes must be wrought

The Springer Spaniel at Treburley nestling under a chestnut tree showing the first signs of autumnal colour.

hints of autumn

wild apples and hawthorn berries presage the arrival of autumn, alas.

and just to add a bit of colour

the last of the summer butterflies (tortoiseshell, red admiral and peacock) on knapweed and heather

a chance encounter

today, unusually, we came across several deer by surprise, probably because the wind was in an unusual direction. This little female roe deer was very slow to notice us and gave me time to take several photographs despite the dogs

two items of interest

In our garden this afternoon, the enormous caterpillar of the elephant hawk moth, trying to frighten us with his evil eye trick, and below a female spider carrying her egg sac with her to ensure  the best start possible for her off-spring.

a day trip to Looe 2

catching crabs is a popular activity

east and west Looe from the bridge

a day trip to Looe

rock pooling in Looe with the tide well out, a hobby for crows and humans

a good place to visit

some of the stars of the donkey park at St Anne's Chapel (see link). It is in a good cause and good fun for small children although Spot wasn't allowed in! Mind you he is contemplating taking in some donkeys.

natural design

some new roof finials have appeared

off the wall

a very placid female wall brown warming up for a day's sport.

morning walking 2

the otter spraint (we find it exciting, and some of us would roll in it if allowed)

there must be enough fish in the river for otters and kingfishers

arrowed for assistance(!)

morning walking 1

Sometimes as this morning a walk becomes life enhancing. The mist in the valley was just lifting as the day warmed up. The first thing we saw was the brilliant flash of blue of a kingfisher, and although we did not realise it at the time (at least maybe subliminally we did) he posed on a branch while we photographed the river. Then the meadows were full of butterflies. Usually fritillaries are very nervous but today they seemed oblivious to our presence. It quickly became clear that it was mating day and the air was full of males fighting for the attention of a few ragged females. Apart from the barrel rolling flight which is very difficult to photograph, we saw a male and female land together and the male embark on a trembling wing display before mating. And then on the way home we found some very fresh otter spraint. And the sun was out. And all was well with the world.

natural opportunism

our old dead apple tree has suddenly flowered again. I am not sure what sort of flower this is but I suspect the seed has come from the bird seed put out in the garden, and has been dropped by one of the birds that uses the tree as a perch. It looks like a malnourished sunflower.

a band of happy followers

done with the vet, off on our hols to pastures new

more from the meadows

Spot taking a close look at some red bartsia, a semi parasite of grass. Maybe he has toothache (qv).The last flowers of the summer are coming out in a tangled profusion, including from the bottom up, water mint, birds foot trefoil, purple loosestrife, meadowsweet, and hogweed at the top

there was news this morning of a new initiative at Kew Millennium Seed Bank to generate seed of our native meadow plants (link). Nearly all of the plants mentioned grow locally except the harebell, although the ivy leaved harebell is found in local woods. The devil's-bit scabious is just beginning to flower (the violet flowers top left) in amongst the purple knapweed

Fern brooch

The fantastic remnant of a darter dragonfly rests on a fern leaf like a swarovski jewel.

muscovy sauce

Calstock viaduct at low tide, and below, in close up, a surprising resident.

for dog lovers only

her favourite toy(aka the Puppy)

meadowland

wrens flourish because there are so many insects in the meadows at this time of year. The knapweed is now the dominant flowering species locally. My eye caught this very pale bumble bee, it looks like a white tailed bumble bee but the other bands should be a brighter yellow so it may be another species.

a bird in the bush

the bushes are full of young birds although they are hard to see properly. This is a young wren. For small birds they make a lot of noise.

it's that time of year again

It's the Flower show, it must be August again. It feels like the hand on a giant clock, ticking once a year. The criteria by which these apples came third are not clear; I would have eaten them.

the joy of flying

for some reason early this morning the paddock was full of martins flying around chasing each other and generally having FUN.