sawwort

this could be the rayed version of lesser knapweed, but the bracts on the buds look much more like sawwort, in either case it is very pretty.

high street Venterdon

everyone is called Martin, packed for the winter holidays in Africa, and ready to go.

by popular request

dreaming of Frank, and the big boys in my life.

more fritillaries

I am not sure which of the large fritillaries this is. You need to get a good view of the underside of the wings to be sure and it was extremely uncooperative about this important issue, but it is either a dark green fritillary, or a high brown fritillary, or a niobe fritillary (only to be found in damp meadows in mainland europe!). It was fast moving and quite light coloured so it is probably a tattered high brown, and the forewing is gently concave. (there are lots of good butterfly links)

red bartsia

the small but intricate flowers of red bartsia, growing in meadows near you. Once considered a cure for toothache, hence its latin name odontites (as in orth-odontics ...straight teeth). It is semi parasitical and closely related to lousewort and yellow rattle (qv)

paintings by nature ... water mint

early morning dew on water mint, in a marsh near you