Update

Thanks to Alistair, we can add more names to the list of plants to be found on the meadow in addition to those identified in the photographs uploaded today:

Germander Speedwell
Dovesfoot Cranesbill

Also, there is a distinction to be made between the Creeping Thistle and the Spear Thistle (the Spear is the one featuring in my photographs of insects on thistles).  The Creeping Thistle is invasive and needs controlling or it will crowd out other plants.  Alistair suggested I do this by cutting the thistles before they go to seed for a couple of years. The Spear is much less invasive (and much more attractive).  However, they are both beneficial to bees, butterflies and other insects, so I will be keeping some patches of Creeping Thistle, as well as the statuesque Spears.

Raspberry and Elm

Elm.  This can grow to a certain size before it becomes vulnerable to the Elm Bark Beetle
which carries Dutch Elm disease.

Raspberry - growing amongst the more robust Brambles.

Hedge Woundwort and Lady's Bedstraw

Hedge Woundwort. Its leaves have a pungent smell and make a good salve, as its name suggests.

Lady's Bedstraw

Oats and Woody Nightshade

Oats.  We think they have grown from bird seed dropped on the common.

Woody Nightshade. Alistair found this growing amongst the brambles around the edge of the meadow.

Yarrow

I grew up thinking that Cow Parsley was Yarrow.
This, apparently, is Yarrow, a member  of the Achillea family.

Common Blue Butterfly (or Holly Blue)

Common Blue Butterfly (or Brown Argus)

Holly Blue Butterfly

Mint Moth. Pyrausta Aurata

I think this is a mint moth, but it is a bit more richly coloured and a little bigger than most images I have found of mint moths.
.

Large Skipper Butterfly

Alistair and I spent an hour or so in the meadow and identified
more new butterflies and plants.  Such as this Large Skipper.  

Proper Scything

Alistair's scythed patch. I helped by gathering the cut grass into a pile.

Alistair's scythe was purchased from a specialist and made to measure.  He has also done a lot of research on how to scythe.  We chose a patch of grass to practice on and Alistair's scythe went through it like a knife through butter, leaving a very professional finish.

Ann's rabbit got a lovely large bale of hay and I begged Alistair to come and help me scythe the meadow proper in the autumn.  Meanwhile, I'm contemplating getting a sickle as I'm not sure I'm a born scyther.

Ragwort Update

Alistair, who lives locally, saw that I was proposing to pull up the Ragwort.  He suggested that he might take a look at it, with his field book.  So he popped up today and identified the Ragwort in the meadow as Common Ragwort which is native (and is different to the introduced species which is very invasive).  Not only is this native, but the Cinnabar moth depends on it entirely.

So, we agreed that it should be left alone.

Alistair also has a scythe.  See next post.

Pulling up the Ragwort

Well, I've done a bit more research on the Ragwort and have decided to dig it out of the meadow this weekend.  Although it makes a lovely splash of colour, it is non-native (mind you, so are rabbits), invasive and poisonous.  Much better to encourage the poppies, cornflowers and oxeye daisies.

If anyone would like to come and lend a hand, you'd be very welcome.

Small White Butterflies (in garden)

Once the Gatekeepers and the Red Admirals had gone, the white butterfly came back, with its mate.  They are Small Whites.

Red Admiral (in garden)

These photos are taken in the garden.  This is not quite true to my blog which is about the meadow, but garden is just opposite the meadow and I think that by providing continuous sources of food, we allow the butterflies to travel across the country, including into our gardens.   This is why it is important that every garden has at least some insect-friendly flowers.

Gatekeeper & Red Admiral (in garden)

Gatekeeper

Red Admiral.  Echinacea flowers are a firm favourite.

Wonderful butterflies in the garden today.  A pair of Red Admirals and a pair of Gatekeepers.  There is also a white butterfly which I can't identify because it won't settle.  But I then realised why it won't settle when I saw one of the Gatekeepers chase it away.  I have never seen butterflies acting in a territorial manner before.

Small Copper Butterfly on Erigeron (in garden)

Butterflies are really hard to capture.
They hardly ever sit still.

Thistles

Back to my point about thistles:  look at the insect life on these (you may need to click to enlarge).  They may not be ideal in the garden but if you have a patch you can allow to grow, they are hugely beneficial.

Small Scabious and Heuchera stalk (in the garden)

I might be getting a bit pretentious with my photos.
But I thought this came out looking rather oriental.

Echinacea and Aster (in the garden)

Hellenium (in garden)

I couldn't resist this picture.  This Hellenium is such a fantastic colour.

Goats Beard seed head

Bee in flight by Vipers Bugloss

Bees in flight by Vipers Bugloss

Meadow Brown Butterfly on Echinacea (in garden)

Scything

Picture courtesy of Penny

I experimented with the scythe this morning, a beautiful sunny day.  It wasn't as scary as I'd thought, but hard on the tummy muscles.  You need a sort of downward chopping motion, at least on the grass as it is at the moment which is long, dry and slippery.  I tried it on a patch of grass in the middle of the road by the meadow and the result is not exactly professional.  It looks like a head of hair cut by a 3 year old.

Ann's rabbit appreciated the hay (from which I'd removed the Ragwort).

Ragwort

Ragwort.  This is looking very pretty on the meadow. However, it is poisonous to horses and probably other animals so be careful.  My neighbour, Penny, who lives next to the meadow tells me it is not native and a lot of people will pull it up when they see it.

Big Butterfly Count

You may have heard Sir David Attenborough speaking about the Big Butterfly Count recently.  Today is the first really sunny day (when I haven't also been working) since I heard him on the radio and I did my 15 minute count.  It's very easy.  You can print off a list of the most common butterflies from the website: www.bigbutterflycount.org and then you sit for 15 minutes in the garden and record how many of each different species you see in that time.  Then you just type in the numbers on the website, provide a bit of information about your location etc and submit the form.

I saw two Peacock's (strictly speaking on the neighbour's Buddelia), a Large White, a Gatekeeper, and something which may have been a Comma.  I've also seen today Common Blues, a Meadow Brown, a Small Copper and a Small Tortoiseshell.

A couple of photos to follow.

Fame at Last!

The Henley Standard is going to publish an article about the meadow.

I was wondering how best to spread the word and encourage others to think about insect-friendly plants and our wildlife in general, so I emailed the newsdesk details of this blog and a week or so later got a call from one of their journalists.  Last Sunday, a very nice young lady came out to take a photograph of me (probably with my hair sticking out at right-angles because I'd been gardening all day) in front of the meadow.  I was hoping that one of the Conservators would be able to make it for the photo as they have been so supportive in this but unfortunately that was not possible.

So, watch this space.

Meadow

The meadow in its summer glory.  The Cornflowers, Vipers Bugloss and Poppies
are still out, and there are lots of puffy white seed-heads.

Insects on Thistles

I took these pictures to show the abundance of insects that live on thistles.  You might need to click on each picture and enlarge it.  As well as the ladybirds and wasp is an interesting orange and black bug and, to the right of the wasp, lots of tiny black flies.  You can also just see a spider's web.

Goats Beard and Daisy

Goats Beard, also known as Jack Go To Bed At Noon and Noon-Flower,  because it opens in sunlight at dawn and closes around noon.

Large Leucanthemum Daisy half open (in garden)

Mallow and Clematis

A mallow, in the hedge opposite the common, but it would be nice to establish it on the common.

Yes, I love bees.  This one is on a Clematis flower in our garden.

Lesser Stitchwort

Lesser Stitchwort.  It forms low loose clumps in the grass, bearing lots of
tiny white flower.