2012 Highlights - Part 6 August

I returned to Temple Balsall on yet another hot summer day (one of the few we had!) because the village is steeped in around 800 years of history with connections to the Knights Templar. It is like a land that time forgot where nature and humanity appear to live in harmony. Its a beautiful and very atmospheric place.

Almshouses

The twelfth century Old Hall - headquarters of the Knights Templar in this area.

The Church of St Mary the Virgin was built between 1320 and 1330 and was not a Templar church as they worshipped in a chapel in the Old Hall. The church was originally built as a chapel for the religious Order of the Knights Hospitallers who took over properties following the dissolution of the Knights Templar.

Fox and Cubs again! or Orange Hawkbit (Thanks Emma!)

St Johns Wort

The pulpit dates from the Gilbert Scott church restoration during the 1840's.

West Window

Rose Window

Another churchyard with areas left to grow "wild" to encourage wildlife

July Visit to Castle Bromwich Hall Gardens - a garden that looks beautiful through the seasons.

My Lady's Border

Green House

Unusual to see a Rowan tree with berries and blossom!

August Visit

Lady Bridgeman's Garden

Cockspurthorn

More Fox and Cubs!

South Kitchen Garden

Medlar

David, my son, had entered every ballot going to try and get tickets for the Olympics and he finally struck lucky and managed to get some tickets for Badminton at Wembley Arena about two days before the event! I was really pleased for him as I know how much he had wanted to go and I was the only person free to accompany him :) The train fares would have been extortionate so I decided to take the car in the end as I managed to prebook a car park space and its not far from the end of the M1. I didn't take my camera as I wasn't sure if photos would be allowed but in the end David took the Fuji.

Wembley Stadium - very impressive!

Wembley Arena

Badminton matches

In August my friend and I had another day out at a National Trust property neither of us had visited before. Upton House and Gardens. What a beautiful place! I shall never forget reaching the Ha Ha at the end of the long lawn and suddenly a superb terraced garden and pool stretch out in front of you.

Small Tortoiseshell on lavender. I saw a lot of butterflies - Small and Large White, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown and my first Green Veined White of the year. Devoid of butterflies the year in general has been but nearly every time I have visited a NT property I have seen many flying about.

I shall certainly return hopefully next year.

Finally, a fun day out. Brian had been given a voucher for the hire of a Caterham 7 for the day for one of those birthdays ending in 0 - he is a massive "Prisoner" fan. So we had a great day (luckily the rain held off!) driving through the countryside and pretty villages of Leicestershire.

We had a pub lunch here.

Sorry again for the length of posts - I think September was quite busy but then I had a much quieter 3 months so hopefully I will get the highlights finished by the 31st!!

2012 Highlights Part 5 July

Some more highlights! Really do apologise for the length of these posts and amount of photos. Again I've split the post into two.

At the beginning of July I went in search of Spotted Flycatchers at Berkswell churchyard. There was no sign initially but I did find a lovely "mini meadow" of Fox and Cubs (again!).

Just as I was leaving I eventually spotted the bird perched on a gravestone from which it kept flying to catch insects. A very poor record shot - I couldn't get close enough for the 70-300mm lens.

In July we had a juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker on the feeders.

Brian's plan to clear and reseed part of our garden "mini wildflower meadow" in the hope of poppies re-appearing worked and there were dozens of poppies throughout July and August.

Some of the other species include Salad Burnet

St John's Wort

Ox-Eye Daisy

Lesser Knapweed

Far more moths were attracted to the trap in July and August

Shaded Broad-bar (New for Garden)

Peppered Moth - a classic example of natural selection in action. Here the light form and another Garden first.

Clay

Dark Arches

Common Carpet

Straw Underwing

Pebble Hook-tip. What a gorgeous moth - so thrilled with this one and another first for the garden.

Yellow Shell

Dun-bar

Copper Underwing

Flounced Rustic

Flame Shoulder

Mint Moth - a very colourful micro moth species

Orange Swift (male)

Copper Underwing

Beautiful antennae on this Willow Beauty

If any of the moth id's are incorrect please feel free to correct me!

At the beginning of July I followed in the footsteps of Edith Holden again and visited Packwood House. On the 7th of July she wrote of being given a beautiful white waterlily from the pool at Packwood House. Today there are two pools one an ornamental pond in the sunken garden and then a larger pool in the parkland so I am not sure which pool she meant! I did find pink water lilies in the sunken garden pool though.

The gardens and house are a delight so a few more photos.

Towards the end of July I went on another "following in the footsteps" quest. This time to Temple Balsall. Edith wrote in the "Country Diary" of cycling to Baddesley and then walking to Balsall Temple (as she called it). She described the area as a beautiful part of the country with "low-lying meadows with sedgy streams meandering through them".

There is a Warwickshire Wildlife Trust there today which I walked around.

Finally finding a Giant Bellflower - a flower she collected and painted.

Back in our garden we found a dragonfly exuvia floating on the pond - I think it belonged to one of the Aeshna or Hawker dragonflies.

On the 3rd August we found a Southern Hawker dragonfly actually in the process of drying its wings.

At the beginning of August Gatekeeper butterflies appeared in the garden. Very few Gatekeepers or Meadow Brown though in the garden this year.