'Pansies, lilies, kingcups, daisies,
Let them live upon their praises,
There's a flower that shall be mine-
'Tis the little celandine.'
Wordsworth liked the Celandine so much he wrote 3 poems about them. This month saw the emergence of these flowers in clumps, all over the field and hedges. It has heart shaped glossy leaves and star shaped flowers in bright yellow - what a combination. And, as it is one of the first flowers to appear in the year, it is a welcome source of nectar for the solitary bumblebees and other pollinators emerging from hibernation; Hoverflies, Drone Flies, Butterflies, Marmalade Hoverflies to name a few. That's not all, the Celandine can also be used to predict rainfall - they close their petals before the rain comes. They will have been mighty busy over this month as we have had the highest rainfall since records began. (Yet another record broken in the seemingly endless march towards climate breakdown). To top it all, they are high in vitamin C and have been used to prevent scurvy, although eating the leaves raw is a bad idea as they are poisonous. Sounds like they are best left for the pollinators. (Information provided by Woodland Trust).
The wet weather continued to beat down upon us and as well as having the highest rainfall, it was also the warmest month ever recorded in England, with an average temperature of 7.5 C. Down here on The Lizard we had warmer days by far but it's nothing to boast about, just another symbol of a world gone wrong. Things continued to grow inspite of the soggy ground, mostly a fine array of weeds, grass and brambles. The Daffodils came and went very quickly, however, the run off from the fields of bulbs continued to pour down the hillside, over the hedge and onto our track, creating great reservoirs of top soil and rainwater, doing a great job of eroding our track and wasting good soil. The Alexanders are now at 4 to 5 feet tall, with plenty more to follow - the ground is covered with them. Primroses are lining the paths and riverbank and Campion leaves are covering vast areas of the garden and orchard. In amongst them colonies of Foxgloves are also emerging, looking full of life and vigour. Navelwort is tumbling down the remains of the old stone walls. The leaves of this plant are edible and used frequently in the foragers salad bowl. According to the site, 'freedom-outdoors.co.uk' - 'Many people compare the taste to that of a crisp lettuce. The leaves are best gathered from plants growing in moist conditions or after the rain as these leaves will be the most juicy.' Plenty of opportunity for that around here. It is a plant I am happy to throw into the salad mix of greens.
All the Oak trees in the field have new buds on them, the Catkins are waving around on a variety of trees; Sweet Chestnut, Alder, Willow, Hazel and the Silver Birch. The older Redwood has made a miraculous recovery and now actually resembles a tree, the younger tree still looks like its been in a dreadful fight, but it's not dead - which is good. As I move up the field away from the river, I pass by blankets of Plantain and Cranesbill (or Wild Geraniums? Or both), covering the ground. It will be a colourful feast later in the season. All along the hedge, new growth of both Hawthorn and Blackthorn bushes appear - so many that even the Rabbits cannot mow them all down to stubs. It means we are extending the width of the hedges by doing nothing. I'm all in favour of that. It's the lull before the storm, March is coming and with it the usual frenzy of activity to prepare for planting, with much weeding, mulching and pruning. Some warmth from the sun would be nice. Please.
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