Last weekend I was lucky enough to see flocks of hundreds of birds (Goldfinches?) feeding on Millet seed heads in a field. It was a wondrous sight, and the chattering, melodic sound filled the air and followed me as I reluctantly walked away.
Winter is the best time to enjoy lichen, before the trees are full of leaves again. I’ve recently learnt that lichen is two organisms living in the same body!! One is a fungus and inside is a green alga. Mind blowing stuff and confirmation that nature is amazing. Not that I needed any convincing! Thanks to The Wonders of Nature for that fact, a book I bought for my daughter because secretly I wanted a copy. My love of nature stems from my childhood – picking up facts from my parents and grandparents but also from a couple of nature books. One had a picture of a dissected owl pellet – full of tiny bones – which opened my eyes to the wonders of the food chain. And the Osborne book of birds eggs had me enthralled.
This week I bought two new houseplants and have been raving about them to anyone who will listen. Firstly, Orchid Oncidium ‘Twinkle’ (pictured), which has tiny cream and orange flowers which smell like a tropical greenhouse, with hints of Vanilla. It smells more strongly in the morning and makes me happy every time I walk into the kitchen. And then I came across Dischidia ‘Pangolin Kisses’ with its fleshy, scale-like leaves. A sculptural, interesting plant with a super cool name. Definitely two to look out for.
I’m Skipping into Spring this March, for Garden Releaf Day in aid of Greenfingers. They build beautiful gardens for children’s hospices and bring joy to so many people’s lives, at a time in their lives when joy is hard to find. I’ve committed to skipping every day and can now manage 5 minutes. I am not very fit and I’ve had many soft tissue injuries as a result of Functional Neurological Disorder. Since my daughter was born eight years ago my hips really don’t like to be stretched – so it’s a real challenge for me. Please do sponsor me if you can. Everything I raise will be match funded by Perrywood.
UPDATE – Sadly my hips did not like the skipping and later in the month I had to withdraw from the challenge. I did pay to wear my floral top on Garden Re-leaf Day and in total we raised £500 for Greenfingers.