It’s been the strangest summer, but the wood continues to move with the seasons. The following photographs were taken during this spring and summer as we all grappled with a more complicated way of life; the simplicity of the wood has been my respite throughout and hopefully these photographs convey a little of that.
A new tree – but an intreguing one because this is the small leafed lime which has not been able to reproduce by seed in the UK for xxx, since the temperature last dropped after the last interglacial. This tiny tree is a significant distance from any parent plant. Is this evidence of global warming? Have temperatures risen enough that the small leaved lime can once again reproduce by seed??
Greater butterfly orchid – this years star new find.
Green heart in the wood.
An early purple orchid, a lovely surprise in xxx
A beautiful black headed cardinal beetle.
It’s just beginning to move into the fungi season again, and here is a smart bracket fungus we found near the wall we are rebuilding.
A baby song thrush, only hours old – its brothers and sisters won’t be far behind.
A close up of our greater butterfly orchid – each individual flower head is so intricate. This particular orchid is an indicator of ancient woodland.
Just before fledging, this baby nuthatch surveys a likely flight path.
Here you can see an old yew has fallen. Its roots had been anchored so tightly into the limestone pavement, that as it has fallen, it has ripped huge chunks of it up.
Red admiral resting on the log pile.
Some of the ants in the wood are quite large!
The underside of a bracket fungus – here you can see
The honeysuckle has smelled lovely this year.
The wonderful symmetry of nature.
Magnificent in the sunshine, a violet ground beetle.
Trees of Sanctuary 