Bluebells: 30th April 2024

Posted on April 30, 2024 by pennyphilcox

The first warm day for a while, with the sun shining brightly meant as well as the wonderful colour, a visit to a local Bluebell wood gave us the haunting scent of Bluebells on the air. Bluebells are an ancient woodland species indicator, the Sheffield city Woolley Woods are at least 400 years old. The UK has almost half the world’s population of Bluebells which take a long time to establish. It takes around 7 years from for a single Bluebell to flower and they are easily damaged by walking on the plants, so always avoid that. It is illegal to dig them up or damage them too. Early botanists called the Bluebell ‘Crowtoes’ and they were also called ‘Witches Thimbles’. Witches were supposed to use them in potions and in medieval times that sticky fluid in the stems was used to glue feathers into arrows and tp starch cuffs and ruffs on Tudor collars and shirts. Spanish Bluebells, often growing in gardens and parks, and a threat because they cross-pollinate and produce hybrids but recent research suggests that this may only affect Bluebells on the woodland edges and not further into the depth of a big wood. However many patches of Bluebells in our countryside are smaller. indicating remnant sites of old woodland, along verges and hedgerows for example, and these can be hybridised. Conditions: Breezy, sunny dry day at last. Temperature: Max 17 Min 9C..

Sycamore Tree: 27th April 2024

Posted on April 27, 2024 by pennyphilcox

The Sycamore is not native to Britain and supports less wildlife than many of our native trees, like Oak and Birch but they live for several hundred years and, due to being fast-growing, having masses of very fertile seeds in autumn, and suffering from no major diseases– so far- are very good at colonising both open ground and woodland. Hence they are thriving in many environments, being adaptable as well as resistant to pollution and salty breezes. As other mature trees succumb to disease and pests, they may become the dominant large trees in some areas. In ancient cultures they symbolise resilience, protection and fertility. Their smooth, grey trunks can become fissured and their canopies dense as they age, which means they provide shelter and nesting sites for beetles, ladybirds, small mammals, bats, and some bird-species. The long racemes of flowers are good nectar and pollen sources for bees and other insects. The seeds provide food for birds with strong beaks- like Greenfinch and Goldfinch. And the creamy wood, which doesn’t stain and is fine-grained and easy to work and carve, is valuable for furniture-making, toys, spoons and kitchen vessels. So- Sycamore do have many redeeming features but they can take over gardens, open ground and woodland, crowding out other species so they are best when managed as part of mixed habitats. Conditions: Very chilly breezes, but largely dry. Temperature : Max 10 Min 4 C.

HAIRY-FOOTED FLOWER BEES: 18th April 2024

Posted on April 18, 2024 by pennyphilcox

Male Hairy-footed Flower Bees emerge first in spring– you can hear these diminutive bees buzzing as they speed wildly round the flowers searching for females. Males are of a slighter build than females, and the easiest way to identify them is from the buzzing and the pale patch of hairs that show up on their faces as they whizz round. The females emerge a few days later and both are around now, feeding and looking to mate, though the males tend to try and dive-bomb the females who spend a lot of time speeding off in the opposite direction! Females of these wonderfully named solitary bees are easier to identify. They appear almost entirely black to the eye, with yellow, hairy and often pollen covered front legs. They have very long probosces relative to their size and feed on early, tubular flowers such a Pulmonaria (Lungwort) and Primroses, for which they are significant pollinators. Keep an eye and ear open for these small, buzzy early bees while they are at their most visible. They nest in crumbling mortar, gaps in brickwork and sometimes in the ground. Conditions: Mostly drier weather, though chilly with some frosts. Temperature: Min 2 Max 11C.

BUGLE: 12th April 2024

Posted on April 12, 2024 by pennyphilcox

Bugle is the other creeping plant of damp woodlands and hedgerows that can be seen at this time of the year, forming carpets through the many runners it sends out. I’m covering it now because it is often confused with the Ground Ivy I covered the other day. Both have a similar form in a similar habitat but Bugle has shiny, deep green or purple leaves as opposed to the paler green, softer hair-covered leaves of Ground Ivy. Bugle’s flowers are deep purple compared with the mauve flowers of Ground Ivy and Bugle flowers grow taller on average, in strong, upright spikes. Several cultivated varieties of Bugle, sold by its scientific name Ajuga, are available for gardens and suitable for light shade and ground cover. They are highly sought after by Bumblebees and other insects so are great for a wildlife garden, especially as they flower in early spring. Bugle was used in the past for several herbal remedies and especially prized for staunching bleeding. Conditions: above average temperatures, and a dry spell for once. Temperature: Max 17 Min 9C.

GROUND IVY 7th April 2024

Posted on April 7, 2024 by pennyphilcox

Ground Ivy is not an Ivy at all, it is a relative of mint, in the Deadnettle family. It has a strong scent, some liken to a tomcat but some think is more attractive than that! Just rub any part of this ground-cover plant and make up your own mind. Whatever you think, once you have smelled it you will remember it. It has soft, kidney-shaped leaves and spreads by runners to form low mats in damp areas, hedgerows and meadows. Its Anglo-Saxon name ‘alehoof’ references the way it was used for centuries to provide the bitterness in beer, before hops became available in England. Ground Ivy is high in vitamin C and has been used for hundreds of years to treat coughs and as an expectorant. It is still used as a herbal remedy in the form of a tea. The masses of this early flowering plant provide a great source of nectar for insects, especially bees. Conditions: bright and dry for a day. Temperature: Max 15 Min 11C.