An Ordinary Person’s Views on Living With Minimal Environmental Impact

  1. Creating a buzz just Bee Cause

    Written by Clare Topping on 12th May 2012.

    Things aren’t buzzing as much as they used to be and the plight of bees is now the subject of a major Friends of the Earth campaign.

    Friends of the Earth are hoping to create a bit of a buzz with their Bee Cause campaign.  I attended a launch event in Northampton today – the aims of the campaign are to get those in power – specifically David Cameron, to acknowledge that the government needs to adopt and implement a bee action plan.  The launch event included a couple of talks about pollinators and their habitats.

    Why are bees important?  Just to clear up a misconception, it is not just bees that are important it is all of natures pollinators – insects, animals and birds – even some lizards are important pollinators elsewhere in the world.  Across the world 87% of the estimated 308,000 plant species are pollinated by insects and other fauna.

    There has been a lot of coverage about the collapse of honey bee populations across the world and lots of speculation about the reasons.  However, this is not a new phenomenon and since the 1800s the UK has lost 23 species of bee and 18 species of butterflies.  More recently there has been a 75% decline in moths since the 1970s and a 25% decline in hoverflies since the 1980s.  So, it would appear that the recent problems with honey bees are only the latest in a long line of declines.  Whilst there are lots of reasons for this, the overriding issue has to be loss of suitable habitat caused by urban expansion and the intensification of agriculture and removal of woodlands and hedgerows.  Indeed Northamptonshire holds the dubious distinction of having lost more species of wildflowers than any other county.  Not something to be proud of.

    So, the Bee Cause campaign aims to raise awareness of this problem and get people taking action.  I’ll be writing some more posts outlining what you can do to help our pollinators in the coming weeks.  In the meantime, if you are interested in getting involved in the campaign there is a lot of information on the FoE website.  Alternatively, if you are in the Daventry area and would like to help, give me a shout and we can work together to make Daventry a bee-friendly place.

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  2. More Spring Flowers

    Written by Clare Topping on 28th Mar 2012.

    There are two flowers that are numerous around Daventry in April, both of which are popular with Orange Tip butterflies.

    From April through to June you might see masses of white flowers in the churchyard, along hedgerows or in damp meadows (there are usually lots at the bottom of the dam in Daventry Country Park).  If you get closer you will see that these are not white flowers, but very pale pink or lilac.  These are cuckoo flowers or lady’s smock (they are also called milk maids, bittercress, mayflower, meadowcress and pigeon’s eye in various parts of the country).  Their name originates from the coincidence of their flowering time with the call of the first returning cuckoos from their African wintering grounds.  The name lady’s smock dates from the Tudor period due to the resemblance of the flowers to the smocks worn at the time.  Possibly originating from this time is also the belief that it is unlucky to bring a cuckoo flower into the house.

    These are a perennial, native plant with yellow-centred flowers (which close up at night and in heavy rain) held on thin stalks that are usually about a foot in height (although they can grow to twice that height).  Their small kidney-shaped leaves are rich in Vitamin C and were used to fight against scurvy.  Although it has been used in salads when lettuce was not available, it hasn’t gained the popularity in modern times of its close relative, watercress.

    It is however much prized by the caterpillars of both the orange tip and green veined white butterflies.  In fact, one of the easiest ways to see the orange tip butterflies is to find a hedgerow containing cuckoo flowers and, if it is a sunny day, it probably won’t be long before you see a male orange tip butterfly patrolling by.

    Another plant that is seen in hedgerows alongside the cuckoo flower is garlic mustard.  Like most flowers this one also has numerous other names, the most common being jack-by-the-hedge, although it is also known as Garlic Root, Hedge Garlic, Sauce-alone, Jack-in-the-bush, Penny Hedge and Poor Man’s Mustard.

    This is a much taller, more erect plant than the cuckoo flower growing up to about a metre in height.  In the first year there are rosettes of green leaves close to the ground.  These overwinter and throw up strong, tall stems.  Between April and June there are clusters of small white flowers, each with four petals arranged in a cross shape.  These then form seed pods which are about four centimetres long that burst open in mid July scattering shiny black seeds up to a metre around.

    The name derives from the smell of garlic when the leaves are bruised and, like the cuckoo flower its leaves (and sometimes flowers and seeds) have been added to salads.  In this case they are said to taste of both garlic and mustard.

    It has also been used medicinally as a diuretic, disinfectant and to treat gangrene, ulcers and sore throats.

    It was introduced to North America in the 1860s and is now considered and invasive species (depending on conditions it can self pollinate and the seeds can lay dormant for a couple of years).  In some areas it is threatening native butterflies which confuse it with food plant of their caterpillar.  They then lay their eggs on the garlic mustard, but the caterpillars cannot eat the leaves and therefore don’t survive.

    In the UK it is an important food plant for the caterpillars of the orange-tip and green-veined white butterflies, as well as supporting many other native insects.  Its seeds are also important in the diet of farmland birds.

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  3. Early Spring Flowers

    Written by Clare Topping on 6th Mar 2012.

    Even though it is only March there are some flowers that will be out soon that are worth looking out for.

    One of the earliest flowering native plants is the Lesser Celandine, member of the buttercup family. Although these are often seen in February, they are most commonly in flower from March through to June. In fact their name, Celandine, is derived from the Greek name for the swallow, Chelidon, as they are both seen as early indicators of spring.

    Celandines (actually Lesser Celandines) are noticeable by the mass of bright yellow star-like flowers that are seen on a carpet of dark green leaves. If you look closely you will see that there are between eight and twelve glossy petals on each of the flowers. You may also notice that the leaves are heart shaped near the ground, often with white markings, and become smaller and more ivy-leaf shaped closer to the flowers.

    Celandines love the sun and are found all over the county, particularly in clay soil, at the roadside, or on sunny banks – the old railway track in Daventry often has some close to town. When the sun goes in the petals close up, reopening as soon as the sun comes out again. Such is the effect of the bright shiny flowers that celandines have been referenced in many poems over the years, they were particularly favoured by William Wordsworth who wrote an ode to the Lesser Celandine.

    The lesser celandine has other local names including pilewort, small celandine, smallwort, figwort, brighteye, butter and cheese. The name pilewort derives from its therapeutic use in the treatment of piles, both internally and as an ointment. This was due to the resemblance of the roots to haemorrhoids

    All traces of this, and the following flower will have gone by mid-summer, the leaves and flowers dying away completely.

    ;

    Another flower to look out for in March is the incredibly pretty wood anemone. As the name suggests, it is mainly found in wooded areas (dry and deciduous please), although it can be found in old hedgebanks – as long as there isn’t too much shade. In common with the celandine, it likes sunshine and therefore does all of its flowering before the leaves are out on the trees and only opens when the sun is out.

    The exquisite (but scentless) white flowers are held above dark green palmate leaves, just one flower per plant. The flowers are often flushed with a little bit of pink. Again, just like the celandine, it flowers too soon to attract many insects and so propagates underground – although in this case very slowly.

    Another name for the wood anemone is the windflower. According to Greek mythology, Anemos, the wind, used the star-like flowers to herald his coming in Spring. The delicate flower stems are strong, but supple enough, to bend and not break in the March winds. It is also called the thimbleweed and smell fox, the latter being an allusion to the musky smell of its leaves.

    Wood anemone has few medicinal uses due to the fact that it is toxic to humans and most animals causing amongst other things skin and gastrointestinal irritation, burning mouth and throat sensations, mouth ulcers and nausea.

    Unimportant fact of the day – the wood anemone is the county plant of Middlesex

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  4. Flutterby Butterfly – look out for these beautiful insects this spring

    Written by Clare Topping on 27th Feb 2012.

    Brimstone butterflies are one of the first on the wing in spring. Look out for these exquisite insects in the next month.

    One of the first butterflies that you will notice as the days get a bit warmer and lighter is the Brimstone.  As its name suggests this is a yellow butterfly, which it is thought was the original butter-coloured fly from which butterfly was derived – its name later being changed to reflect its sulphurous colour.

    The Brimstone is one of the few UK butterflies that overwinter as an adult and therefore it is one of the early fliers in Spring.  In fact Brimstones were spotted on 2nd January in Hampshire and Surrey, and have already been spotted in Northamptonshire in February.

    Whilst many butterflies live as adults for only a few weeks Brimstones are a much longer-lived insect and, despite laying eggs only once a year, can be seen from February through to November, depending on where you are in the country.  The best time to see the butterflies are reported to be April, May and August (the latter when the year’s eggs have gone through their full cycle and the adults have emerged).  However, I think they are much more noticeable in March when there are fewer insects about and the bright yellow of their wings becomes very noticeable as it catches the spring sunshine.  They are another of the indicator species that I use to decide that spring has finally sprung.

    So, how do you recognise a Brimstone butterfly and where will you see one?  The males are a bright yellow colour whereas the females are much paler but both have an orange spot on their wings; their colour makes them unmistakeable in flight.  They are a medium sized butterfly, their wings are about 2 1/4 inches and they are very strong fliers, often roaming away from their food sources in search of a mate.

    At rest you will notice that their wings are a beautiful leaf or shield shape.  This helps them camouflage themselves for roosting overnight under ivy leaves or for when hibernating over winter.  I was actually surprised by how well they blend in when I watched one move underneath the leaf of a dogwood in the garden to shelter from the rain.

    Brimstone caterpillars eat mainly buckthorn and alder buckthorn plants, they are bright green and apparently resemble the caterpillars of the cabbage white butterflies.  I haven’t seen any yet, but I will let you know if I find some.

    They are found almost anywhere there is a bit of sunshine.  Males can be seen patrolling along hedgerows and roadside looking for love, whereas the females tend to be a little less obvious and hide in the vegetation.  They are particularly fond of purple and nectar rich plants.  In the spring you will often see them on primroses, cowslips and bluebells, whereas in the summer knapweed, teasel (which their long proboscis allows them to feed on) and thistles are popular.  The Brimstones that I have seen in my garden tend to like the buddleia and verbena- as do most of the other insects.

    So, in the coming month, keep an eye out for this remarkably pretty butterfly.  If you see it, you will know spring is on its way.

    If you want to know more about butterflies or help conserve them then the Butterfly Conservation website is a good place to start.

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  5. Daventry and District Invaded

    Written by Clare Topping on 13th Feb 2012.

    Scandinavian visitors abound around Northamtponshire at this time of year.

    Many people may have noticed some unusual visitors to their garden during the recent cold snap.  They look like thrushes, but there is something a bit different about them.  Those of us not fortunate enough to have these birds in their garden may however have noticed flocks of light coloured birds flying over head, or hopping about in the fields.  Or, if disturbed on a walk round the country park, flying up out of the hedgerows making a loud chacking alarm call.

    Did you see a large thrush (about the same size as a mistle thrush), but with a grey head, and chestnut back, perhaps it flew off and looked very pale underneath, or a flock of pale looking birds flew over you?  These are fieldfares, visitors from Scandinavia, three quarters of a million of which arrive around the end of October (braving the north sea and the waiting, hungry gulls), slowly spreading south and west, making the return journey in March and April.  Their arrival has been seen as a sign of winter for centuries, dating back to Chaucer’s day when they were trapped and eaten for food, apparently they are as tasty as quail (which I have also never eaten).

    Unlike most thrushes, these are very gregarious, they arrive in flocks, leave in flocks, wander around the countryside in flocks and even nest in groups back in Norway.  When was the last time you saw a flock of song thrushes (or more than a couple together for that matter)?

    Normally fieldfares would feast on invertebrates and are usually seen in groups ‘head up, chest out, all facing the same direction and spread evenly across a snow-dusted field’.  However, once the ground freezes they move into the hedgerows to eat berries, particularly hawthorn, and will also take advantage of windfall apples and cotoneaster berries in larger gardens.

    fieldfare
    The other member of the thrush family that visits in winter is the very pretty redwing.  These arrive about a month before the fieldfares and are usually heard before they are seen, thousands arriving at the east coast overnight, making ‘seeping’ noises (not sure what that sounds like!) as they travel further west in their flocks.  Hundreds of thousands of them arrive each winter, but these are less robust than the fieldfares and other thrushes and a particularly harsh winter could result in the majority perishing.  They also leave to venture back to Scandinavia around April.

    These little thrushes are very similar to the song thrush, but they have a cream stripe above their eye which makes them unmistakeable, even at a distance.  The red patch under their wing is just visible when perched, but contrasts with their creamy underparts and becomes much more visible in flight.

    These are much shier than the fieldfares, and, although they feed on the same invertebrates and berries they are more likely to be found in hedgerows than in the open fields.  As soon as they are disturbed they will fly off into higher trees, making their alarm calls (hence my incredibly poor picture being the best I have  managed to date).  I think that they tend to come into gardens more often than fieldfares (although neither have appeared in mine), being particularly fond of cotoneaster berries.

    These little thrushes are also apparently quite tasty, years ago they were particularly prized in France where they arrived in time to fatten themselves up on the ripe grapes.

    redwing
    So keep your eyes open for these winter visitors, there are lots around Daventry, and they are likely to be here into March, depending on the weather.

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