GREENWOOD
Nature and the neighbourhood
CD Countryside Views 3
Posted on July 15, 2021
It was a lovely July morning and I thought I would venture across the main road at the top of the village to admire views from the slopes of Charlton Higher Down now that the crops are all ripening and the colours so different since my last visit. When I arrived at the place I was aiming to explore, I was disappointed to find that the farmer was spraying a field, and it seemed unwise to be too close. I ventured a short distance in the opposite direction but the path petered out and I could still smell the spray. So I walked back the way I came.
Bladder Campion
Posted on July 11, 2021
Here is another member of the Campion family. I have already shown the Red Campion and the White Campion, and this is the Bladder Campion (Silene vulgaris). These specimens were photographed at various times this summer and last, and were growing at the base of the hedgerow that lines the lane by the allotments in Charlton Down.
Hoverflies
Posted on July 10, 2021
There were loads of Hoverflies swarming around and settling on the Hogweed flowers in the hedgerows the other day when it was mild and the sun was trying to shine. They look a lot like bees (Hymenoptera) but they are flies (Diptera) so they do not sting. I think at least some of these hoverflies are Episyrphus balteatus known as Marmalade Hoverflies and many of them migrate to Britain each year from the continent.
Hover-flies and other insects on hogweed flowers
Poppies 1
Posted on July 8, 2021
Just two poppy flowers actually. Standing out as bright red jewels beside two tall thistles in a field of ripening rape seeds. Rather battered poppies flapping this way and that in the wind. Somehow, minute beetles still managing to cling on tight, and hoverflies quickly darting within whenever they could. The petals looked like crumpled tissue paper, sometimes with angular folds reflecting light like the fragmented patterns of a kaleidoscope.
White Bryony
Posted on July 7, 2021
White Bryony (Bryonia dioica) climbs with long spiralling tendrils through hedges and woodland margins and can reach a height of about 4 metres. The creamy petals of the small flowers with their green veins and hair-like structures look rather alien. The leaves are from 4 – 7 cm across and divided into 5 lobes. In the autumn the plant can be seen more readily because of the strings of bright red berries.
White Bryony is flowering right now in the hedgerow along the lane by the allotments; entwined amongst the branches of an Elder on the field boundary of the CD Community Orchard; and in hedges of the fields surrounding the village of Charlton Down where there are footpaths that people often follow on their walks. The flowers attract a wide variety of flies, bees, and other pollinating insects. I was pleased to see a foraging red-tailed bumble bee although it buzzed off rather quickly so the shot is a bit of a blur, but you can see what it is nonetheless.
Bryonia is an emetic. That means that taking it orally can induce vomiting. It’s also a diuretic, meaning it can increase urination. This is why some people take Bryonia for relief of constipation, an upset stomach, or fluid retention. Bryonia root may also have anti-inflammatory effects.
Bryonia: Purported Benefits and Potential Side Effects (healthline.com)
Snail 1
Posted on July 6, 2021
Have you noticed how often small terrestrial snails can be found clinging to the tall stems of hogweed? These are usually Banded or Brown-lipped snails with yellow shells and distinct markings. This one, I am not so sure which species. There are so many Helicidae to choose from in Britain. It could be a Banded or a Brown-lipped snail (Cepaea nemoralis or Cepaea hortensis). Their shell makings are varied and include forms with no dark markings at all or interrupted bands. What is remarkable in this individual is that the shell is see-through and the flesh inside is clearly visible – the folded lobes the digestive gland. What lovely creatures these are. I like to watch them extrude their reticulated body and inch upwards on the stalk, with tentacles extended, black dots for eyes on the end. I have previously only noticed translucent shells like this on semi-aquatic species of snail living on the marginal vegetation of the pond in the CD Nature Reserve.
You can click on the image to enlarge it.
Yarrow
Posted on July 3, 2021
Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is a strongly aromatic perennial plant that grows in meadows, verges, and on waste ground – like the ones shown here growing on the fenced-off and walled-off patch of land between the cricket pavilion and Redwood House. The photographs are from the summer of last year because this year the area was cut to the ground just as the yarrow and other native wild plants were about to flower. I think this patch of ground would be ideal as a wild flower zone. A wide variety of native wild plants is already established there including evening primrose, great burdock, common teasels, common bindweed, field bindweed, honeysuckle, nettles, ground ivy, honey wort, hedge woundwort, comfrey, black medick, bird’s foot trefoil, buttercups and dandelions of many types, to name a few. It would only need some appropriate management to make it flourish, contribute more seriously to biodiversity in Charlton Down, and provide a beautiful display that also supplies the needs of insects and birds in the area.
Yarrow is an edible plant reputed to have beneficial therapeutic properties, and it can be used as a preventative medicine as well as an anti-inflammatory, anti-septic, diuretic, diaphoretic, astringent, and expectorant – though it is mainly used for the healing of wounds. As with the use of most herbal remedies it is always best seek professional advice before using wild plants as medicines.
CD Countryside Views 2
Posted on July 2, 2021
The views from the elevation of Higher Charlton Down are magnificent and span miles of countryside. You get there by crossing the main road on the upper part of the village and following the footpath signposted to Waterston Ridge. The English system of hedgerow boundaries gives the landscape the look of a great patchwork quilt with each parcel of land a different colour depending on what is growing at any particular time in the farming year. Individual trees, small clumps, copses and woods are spattered over the landscape, while the odd barn or building stands out like a modern monument in the panorama. The ancient monuments are more difficult to spot – sometimes only discernible when the light is just right and only then when you know where to look. Pictures taken on 5 May 2021.
CD Meadow Walk 1
Posted on July 1, 2021
Some pictures from a few weeks ago when I strolled around the place I call ‘the meadow’ – which was originally, in the old Herrison Hospital days, known as the incinerator field! All the shrubs and grassland plants were burgeoning. Guelder rose, buttercups, vetch, umbellifers, sorrel, grasses of many types, sallow or goat willow catkins fallen to the ground, a poor dead vole, and a red and green early instar shield bug on a colour-coordinated grass flowerhead.
Remember you can click on any image to enlarge it in a gallery
Common or Russian Comfrey
Posted on June 29, 2021
Comfrey is a common on the banks of the Cerne, but does crop up in other place away from the water in Charlton Down. These ones with the pink-purple flowers in curved clusters could either be the Common Comfrey (Symphyum officinale) or the Russian hybrid (Symphytum x uplandicum) – there is a wide variation in the colour of the flowers and it is difficult for an amateur to tell them apart. The pink flowered plants grow mostly by the water. White or creamy flowered comfrey seems to only occur further away from the river and can be seen in a few places in the centre of the village.
In herbal healing, Comfrey is known for an impressive list of alleged medicinal benefits that include wound healing, reduction of pain, anti-inflammatory activity, boosted immune system, better bone growth, anti-cancer potential, improved respiratory health, and skin care. But be careful. One online site gives this
Word of Caution: There is a high concentration of specific alkaloids in comfrey that makes them controversial and potentially toxic when used inappropriately. These alkaloids are particularly potent when consumed, which is why many medical professionals do not suggest any internal use and only limited topical use instead. As with any new herbal remedy, check with a trained herbalist or medical professional, as some of the complications of this high alkaloid content can affect the health of your liver. Use of comfrey is restricted in some countries such as UK and U.S. so consult your local health specialist before use.
