What have you seen

Pliers 

We took MiL to Bodnant for a birthday treat but in reality it was a treat for all of us. The ground plants were just as exciting as the Magnolias and fell in love with Brunnera Macrophylla "Jack Frost" a lovely little ground covering plant. So take with it that I forgot to take a photo of it. Doh!

WN we've got the white Brunnera, I think it's called "Mr Morse" I was looking at the Jack Frost version yesterday at Abbotsbury, very attractive. Glad you all enjoyed Bodnant. 

We also liked the Pulmonaria Sissinghurst White.

I quite like the variegated varieties of most plants.

Lots of wood anemones in flower yesterday, on our Ribble Valley walk. I really love white flowers.

A couple of oystercatchers turned up on our nearby farmers’ field today, they’ve certainly been blown off course, just slightly! 🙂

We too saw a large bunch of Wood Anemones today, and lots of Celendines. Enjoyed watching the ducking and weaving of the Lapwings and hearing the trilling of the Skylarks during our morning walk.

Earlier this week we spotted our first couple of bluebells in flower in our local woods such a delight to see   celendines have been flowering for a few weeks now along with the violets & the wood anemones for about a fortnight, more appearing each day. Primroses have been in flower in the area for several weeks but not in the woods, now we will have to check out the local orchids 

We have had a lot of cowslips this year and violets the best year since we have been here in Spring.

Yesterday we had a male Hen Harrier flying around over the top of us whilst enjoying a coffee with friends here and this morning a Heron flew over near the kitchen window and at the same time our usual male pheasant plus he now has a female pheasant with him and decided to do the courtship outside our kitchen window all happening here, plenty of butterflies about wall brown, scarce swallowtail, green veined white, brimstones, cleopatras, small blue and holly blue so spring has arrived, have got two pairs of blue tits nesting in two nest boxes and a noisy collared dove nesting in a large conifer near our bedroom he coos most mornings about 7am and OH not an early riser.

Not see any primroses yet but do have wild orchids coming into flower around here and it looks like a good year for orchids.

We've had four buzzards overhead today, the residents of the nearby rookery probably don't enjoy the sight as much as we do. Keep hoping we'll see a swallow soon, no luck yet.

 No swallows here yet, either, Brue, but chiffchaffs seemingly everywhere. Heard, but not seen.

Weather turning quite wintery at the moment, maybe blow some rarities in....?

🦅🙂

Managed to see a Chiffchaff yesterday on our walk and one today when it popped into the shrubs at the bottom of the garden. A rare visitor for us today, a  Male Siskin that spent an age on the bird feeder.

The walk this morning was down quiet country lanes with bird song everywhere including quite a few Blackcaps. Good to see the blossom coming out on the Blackthorn.

Isn't Spring a wonderful time?