Recent Reading, Snowdrops, Ragged Robin and an Exhibition

Recent Reading


The George and Molly Palmer-Jones series is improving the more I read.

Stephens and Mephisto Mystery 2 - I enjoyed this far more than the first book in the series. I do love the way Elly Griffiths develops her characters. Quite dark and a clever ending - I had no idea who had done it!

I treated myself to the final Shetland book to read over Christmas. So sad that this appears to be the last in the series as I have enjoyed each and every book although I have to say I wasn't overkeen on the tv series - to me it was totally different to the books and I just ended up getting confused!

I love Dave Goulson's bee books - he has such an entertaining writing style and you learn a great deal.

This is a great introduction to folklore which I loved. My son is now reading it :) A great reference book.

I appreciate the next book is only for those who love churches especially those with Herefordshire Romanesque Sculpture but I found it brilliant and now have a long list of churches to visit!

Snowdrops

I went for a drive earlier this week to check out trees with berries in the hope that I might spot a Waxwing. There seems to be quite an influx into the country although I haven't seen any reports of sightings in Warwickshire so far. I didn't see any Waxwings but I stopped off at the church of St Mary and St Margaret to look for Snowdrops.

The churchyard is opposite the church and I

did find some Snowdrops almost in flower - my first this year.

A few of my Christmas presents


I was thrilled to be given by my daughter

this Ragged Robin hand-painted slate from the Lake District and

from my son a replica Green Man medieval tile.

I really fell in love with this handmade dragonfly tile when we went to an exhibition at Quarr Abbey on the Isle of Wight last summer so my son secretly bought me one :)

A few weeks ago I was in Solihull so popped into the Core Library to see the "Solihull Remembers 1914-1918 exhibition" which was really excellent, well researched and moving.

You can read more about the project aimed at finding out about the lives of Solihull men who died in the First World War here

There was also a very good smaller display on local suffragettes including the lady called Lettice Floyd who I have mentioned before as her grave is in the churchyard at Berkswell.




Mystery Flower - Some of you may recall the flower I spotted on the Meriden walk recently. As "Midmarsh John" suggested in his comment I think it is probably Ragwort. I noticed someone on Twitter in #WildflowerHour has seen one recently in flower. I have posted my photo on Twitter asking for help so if I get confirmation of the id I will let you all know.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330

#30 Days Wild - Days 5 - 9 (Moths, Bees, Urban and Churchyard Wild Flowers, Garden planting and a peaceful Garden

Tuesday 5th June - Day 5

I put out the moth trap on Monday evening. In the trap on Tuesday morning

20 x Heart and Dart

1 x Bee Moth

1 x White Ermine

1 x Flame Shoulder

2 x Shuttle-shaped Dart (see below with Heart and Dart)

1 x Bright-line Brown-eye

1 x Straw Dot

1 x Silver-y - It is worth looking out for these moths round flowers in the day-time too

1 X Square-spot Rustic

1 x Elephant Hawkmoth - I think this is a different individual to the one I rescued on early on Monday morning as it is a little worn. Also I released the rescued moth some yards away from the house.

I also found a Dock Bug in the wildflower meadow - a new species for the garden. No photo, I am afraid, as the camera was in the house.



Wednesday, 6th June - Day 6

Reading my new Bumble Bee book from the Bumble Bee Conservation Trust and watching bees in the garden. The most popular plants for bees near the house are Sage and Thyme flowers, Red Valerian and the Blue cranesbill type Geranium.



Thursday, 7th June - Day 7

I drove round today looking for wildflowers on verges and traffic roundabouts. I spotted two roundabouts full of ox-eye daisies and a grass verge full of poppies. I stopped off at one urban wildflower meadow planted some years ago which had poppies and ox-eye daisies.

I then paid a visit to St Mary and St Margaret's churchyard in the suburban area of Castle Bromwich.

The graveyard was laid out around 1810 - prior to that parishioners were buried at the church at Aston.

In 2009 there was a community project when several hundred volunteers cleared brambles and ivy which were choking graves and planted flowers to attract pollinating insects. It is good to see that large areas of grass are left uncut and wild flowers are flourishing attracting insects.

Volunteers also researched the stories behind people buried in the churchyard. They have produced an interesting little booklet called "Stories Behind the Headstones". I will go back one day in search of more gravestones and tell you the histories of some of the people buried there.


Ernest Smallwood, mentioned at the base of this memorial, was an actor who died in 1897 at the age of 37 after falling from the top deck of an omnibus in Oxford Street.

Charles Haynes was a Platelayer who died in 1882 from a fractured skull and lacerations to his leg after accidentally coming into close contact with a train in foggy weather.

Saturday, 9th June - Day 9


On Saturday we paid a visit to Harvington Hall in Worcestershire - a rather splendid moated Tudor Manor House with rare wall paintings and loads of priest holes (I will do a separate post on the Hall). I spent a lovely hour looking round the peaceful and tranquil gardens watching moorhen and a family of ducks.

Reference: "Stories Behind the Gravestones" booklet