Christmas Day 2023: Day One of 12 Days Wild, the Wildlife Trusts winter challenge to do something wild each day. I started by sitting in the garden in the dark at 7 am with a hot chocolate, taking advantage of the quiet to listen to the birds waking up. On a normal Monday there would beContinue reading “Stories from a silver birch”
Category Archives: everyday nature
Pollinating Peartree: Reflections on Bridge Road part 1
I was surprised to realise I haven’t written a blog specifically about the Pollinating Peartree project since my first post in January 2021. For a while I’ve been thinking that I’d like to do two things. One is to reflect on what I’ve learned, as I think it could be helpful to others who mightContinue reading “Pollinating Peartree: Reflections on Bridge Road part 1”
A Tale of Toadflax
Meet the Toadflax Brocade moth caterpillar, which came into my life on Wednesday, 23 August 2023. They feed on Purple Toadflax, a plant that I first identified on Peartree Green a few years ago, and which is abundant in the alleys close to our garden. This post is about noticing wildlife in unexpected places andContinue reading “A Tale of Toadflax”
30 Days Wild & the Five Pathways
The idea behind 30 Days Wild is to do one thing in nature each day in June. It takes place every year, and in this post I’m writing about my experiences in 2022. I think that year was the first time I logged something every day. Maybe that’s because it was easier in some ways,Continue reading “30 Days Wild & the Five Pathways”
Suburban Safari
Does this look like a wildlife haven to you? Does it even look like nature? Maybe not for many people. For some people in Southampton, ‘nature’ means the New Forest. For others it might mean one of our local nature reserves, such as Miller’s Pond, Peartree Green or Chessel Bay, or maybe a park. ButContinue reading “Suburban Safari”