Even the most reluctant gardener (or rambler) is more likely to venture out at this time of year. Many plants and flowers emerging, fresh leaves on the trees, roadside verges high with cow parsley. Yes, gardening can be fun, but also back-breaking, frustrating, a losing battle to stop weeds and bugs taking over – orContinue reading “Serendipity”
Tag Archives: Nature
Earth Our Home
What is your first thought when you hear the word “earth”? Is Planet Earth somewhere you take for granted, a backdrop to your life that you assume will go on as it is? Can you still enjoy nature unclouded by earth’s issues? Or has dread of what’s ahead come to overshadow that experience? Maybe howContinue reading “Earth Our Home”
Out In The Open
Last Christmas I heard about an outdoor nativity event held on a farm. A crowd of all ages gathered and moved around different parts of the farm, hearing how Jesus’s birth in Bethlehem all those years ago unfolded, and singing carols, while farm animals (goats, sheep and donkeys) bleated or munched hay in their pens.Continue reading “Out In The Open”
Sketching Nature
On the very first day of meteorological autumn, as it is now called, I saw a cranefly – or daddy long legs – bumbling along the back wall of my house, up and down and across. Always a sign that autumn is on its way, and a sighting I’ll record on a page in myContinue reading “Sketching Nature”
Nature’s Soundscape
Hearing sounds of the natural world can become everyday and something I take for granted. Wind rustling through tree leaves, a blackbird singing, bees buzzing, water trickling over stones. There are apps now to identify pretty well any natural sound. In some ways they make us listen out more, then learn what’s in our midst.Continue reading “Nature’s Soundscape”
Overlooked
Outside my window as I write this is a small patch of grass – maybe 2 metres by 1 – where I have let the grass grow longer to see what else might appear. There’s some dove’s foot cranesbill with its little purple flowers, there are some daisies and dandelions, and a few Timothy andContinue reading “Overlooked”
Forest Of Flowers
Recently I saw a photo of wild flowers blooming in the middle of a busy city, part of the Forest Of Flowers initiative. I remembered the photo in part because I like the name: Forest Of Flowers. It conjures up a mental image of flowers growing in profusion, carpeting the ground, an expanse of colourContinue reading “Forest Of Flowers”
Slowing Down
Mindfulness, relaxation, calm: the need to step back has become more and more common, as people react to the pace of life. Everything now moves at speed. With communication easier than ever, it feels like responses should be immediate, and the 24/7 news stream never shuts down. This has to contribute to nature’s importance inContinue reading “Slowing Down”
At The Grassroots
Another December, another COP climate summit. Every year, as everyone winds down for the Christmas holidays, politicians and negotiators descend on a conference centre somewhere in the world to decide our planet’s future. Or that’s how it seems. I’ve been following these summits for years now. Some feel more hopeful than others, but you neverContinue reading “At The Grassroots”
Concrete Cows
A few years ago I heard about Providence Youth Club in Battersea, London, welcoming a group of farm animals from The Shallowford Trust’s Dartmoor farm to a local city carpark for a week. Londoners could come to see the calves, lambs and pigs in the straw in pens just across the street from shops andContinue reading “Concrete Cows”
Medley 