St Michael's Warmington

 

Not far from the National Herb Centre is the church of St Michael's, Warmington. It is located outside the village high on a bank by the "B" road.  I was determined to stop off and explore at least the churchyard!

According to the church sign the church was built between 1125 and 1345 by Benedictine monks from Normandy.  

The church, like many buildings in this area, was constructed of Hornton stone which is a pure ooidal limestone of the Lower Jurassic. The rock formation crops out at the nearby Edge Hill escarpment and the stone has been quarried for building and ornamental purposes since Medieval times.  In more recent times it has become a source of iron ore.

Priest's Door with ogee head.

The south aisle is late 13th century and the window has 3 circles in bar tracery.

The East window (exterior)

The West Tower is Decorated to Perpendicular.

The church was open but I didn't go in as D had remained in the car and time was getting on and I had promised we would drive through a few of the villages.

I had really stopped off because I wanted to see the churchyard which has many carved ironstone headstones and table tombs from the 1630's onwards decorated with scrolls, foliage, winged heads, skulls etc. Even Pevsner called it ("an impressive array"), The churchyard seemed large and spread downhill beyond the east end of the church. Due to lack of time I concentrated on the area around the church as apparently some of the lower churchyard was closed any way for safety reasons.

It was interesting to see so many memento mori examples and there is no doubt I shall have to return and explore more.  It was good too to see that it was a Warwickshire example of a "living churchyard" with many areas where wild flowers, grasses etc could flourish.

We drove down the lane to the nearby village of Warmington which was very picturesque with houses surrounding a village green and pond.

The houses are built of Hornton stone, some thatched, and most are 17th or 18th century.  The manor house below was built around 1600 probably for a Richard Cooper.

We then drove off to the village of Shotteswell which was even more charming and picturesque.  I couldn't park as the road through the village was one lane with blind corners but we will definitely return as there is a church there too!

Then onto Mollington - not quite as picturesque but a lovely pub!!

I must admit the detour took longer than planned and we were faced with a return journey on the M40 and M42 in the rush hour!

The villages definitely need further visits and there is another one nearby called Farnborough with an old church and National Trust property!

I hope everyone is staying safe and well.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic FZ330 bridge camera

Reference: Pevsner Buildings of England Warwickshire (new edition).

A Churchyard full of Wildlife and Nesting Activity Update

A few years ago I read in a book on Warwickshire's Butterflies about the churchyard at Oldberrow which is regarded as the best churchyard in Warwickshire for wild flowers. I have been meaning to pay a visit for years and then I also read more recently that it was a good site to see slow worms so it immediately went near the top of my list of places to visit.

The churchyard is an area of unimproved neutral grassland with a huge diversity of flowers including several that are uncommon in Warwickshire. Until the early 1980's it was traditionally managed as a hay meadow and scythed just once a year to provide fodder. Sadly, later "tidiness" was encouraged and it was mown regularly but fortunately many of the species, including unusual ones survived. In 1993 a change in management took place and Warwickshire Wildlife Trust gave advice on the best way to "manage" it. In 1998 the church received a grant from Rurual Action for a full survey to take place and a management plan was drawn up. Management is now carried out in "compartments" with grass being cut at certain times of the year to suit the species that flower in that particular area be they Spring flowering plants or Summer flowering plants. The site is carefully monitored and a balance is sought between allowing plants to flower and set seed and also creating an appearance acceptable to parishioners.

Plants in flower when we visited included Buttercups, Cow Parsley, Tufted Vetch, Self Heal, Ribwort Plantain, Daisies, Bugle, Herb Robert, Common Sorrel, Germander Speedwell, and Bistort (which is a rare plant for Warwickshire). Other plants recorded on the site include Cowslips, Betony, Devil's Bit Scabious, Hoary Plantain, Common Birds-foot Trefoil, Black Knapweed and Lady's Mantle. It is a site which would be worth visiting at different times of the year.

Cowslips now going to seed.

I was thrilled to find Bistort in flower.

The Peshall Tombs

We looked carefully and quietly for Slow Worms (Anguis fragilis)without success and then we came across a couple of black sheets being used as refugia so very carefully we lifted one - nothing underneath but under the other we saw at least four or five slow worms of varying sizes. They are beautiful little lizards looking like burnished gold.

My record shots (I was holding the camera with one hand and lifting the sheet with the other and obviously we only lifted the sheets for a few seconds in case we disturbed them).

D's shot was slightly better

*D



It was a thrilling moment as the last time I saw one was in the Lake District about 15 years ago when there was one in the drain of the cottage we were staying in.


The Slow or Blind Worm is a legless lizard. They hibernate underground between March and October, mate in April and May when the males will fight each other. In August or September 10 or 12 young are born. They eat live prey such as slugs, insects and spiders but will not consume carrion. Predators include adders, hedgehogs, kestrels and rats and frogs and toads will eat the young. They are widespread and common but shy and therefore rarely seen. They spend a lot of time underground and in gardens will use compost heaps.

I did have a very quick look round the church which has medieval origins but was very largely re-built in 1875 although it does still retain a few medieval features.

The age of the font is uncertain but it could be 13th century; it has a Tri-lobed, stiff leaf flower motive and the lid is 19th century.

The beautiful West Window with a bird, sheep and views of the church and a nearby house.

The East window

19th century encaustic tiles

The book below which was in the church has a different cover to my version but the book is highly recommended if you like wildlife churchyards and wild flowers.

Timothy having fun.

We had lunch (cheese and salad sandwiches and a flask of tea in the car) and then B and D went for a walk along the lane while I returned to the churchyard. I didn't disturb the slow worms again but did look for more flowers and insects. I didn't see many butterflies apart from one that flew off without being identified but Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Skippers, Common Blue and Marbled White have been recorded there.

There were several bees about mainly common Carder.

I saw many of these Common Malachite Beetles (Malachius bipustulatus)

Cuckoo spit which houses the nymph of a Froghopper

On Bistort and Buttercups I found loads of Swollen-thighed beetles (Oedemera nobilis

On the way home we stopped off in nearby Henley in Arden to visit the bakery - here is the Green Man on St John the Baptist.

Blue Tit Update

These record shots were taken at the end of last week. As you can see one of the chicks was far larger than the others and sitting on them to get more than his fair share of the food. They all fledged last Saturday morning. One had a lucky escape - as B was in the garden when he spotted a fledgling about a foot off the ground and a cat stalking up to it (cat was frightened off thankfully)

*D Photo taken by D with the Canon SX50HS bridge camera
Rest of photos taken by me with the Panasonic FZ330 Lumix Camera