Milton Park Wood to Whatcombe

[puddleshark]

It's bluebell season, almost.



A grey morning. Neither warm nor cold nor windy.


Milton Park Wood is a pleasant place to walk, but the trees were planted in the last century, and the woods have none of the mystical qualities of an ancient wood at bluebell time. Still, there are primroses and wild garlic flowering along the way. The treetops are full of birdsong and the hammering of woodpeckers.


And the wood is managed by the Forestry Commission, which means there are miles of unmarked gravel tracks that you can wander at will, in an effort to get thoroughly lost.






No leaves on the taller beeches yet.


And the saplings down in the understorey are taking advantage of the light.


As are the bluebells.


The bluebells not quite in full flower yet. Once I thought I caught a hint of their scent on the air, but maybe it was wishful thinking.


Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) and Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea).


Woodspurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides) - amygdaloides meaning "almond-like".


Garlic Mustard or Jack-in-the-Hedge (Alliaria petiolata).


Pendulous Sedge (Carex pendula), a big aggressive grass of damp places.


Silverweed (Potentilla anserina). (The wisdom of the internet has it that Roman soldiers used to use the soft furry leaves to make their shoes more comfortable, but no-one quotes a source for this, so maybe it's one of the inventions that spring up about Roman soldiers, like the lost legions that are sometimes heard marching along the downs in thick fog...)

Despite my best effort, I failed to get lost, and found myself on the bridleway to Whatcombe.





Across the lane, and onto a little footpath the runs along the higher ground of the Winterborne Valley, parallel to the road.


Views of Whatcombe House. Thanks to the wettest spring ever, the park has acquired a small - and presumably unwanted - lake since my last visit.


Ancient trees in the park.


The very sad remains of what was once a beautiful stuccoed and tile-topped wall around the orchard of Whatcombe House.



The wind getting up again, and drizzle in the air. But the cowslips are in flower, so that's alright.




Time to perch on the root of an ancient beech, and enjoy a cup of coffee from a flask.


The River Winterborne, still running high. Perhaps someone needs to remind it that a winterborne is a river that is only supposed to run in winter.

Back across the lane, and onto a track up onto the wild windy downs:




Wheat fields one side, woods to the other.


Back through the woods, along Park Pale - the track that once marked the boundary of Milton Park - with the sun trying to come out.

Met a couple out walking with a great pack of five or six spaniels (they're hard to count) and one very muddy cockerdoodle, and got to say hello to Springers of assorted ages and appearance. A very cheerful end to the walk.

Comments

[heleninwales]

Your flowers and trees are so much further ahead than ours. That looks like a good walk with plenty to see.

I had thought I might go out for a short walk this afternoon, but the forecast lied and it's only just stopped mizzling. Tomorrow should be better.

[puddleshark]

The bluebells are only just coming into flower here. I think it will be another few weeks before they are at their best, and late April / early May is about right for bluebell season here. But the wild garlic seems to flower earlier every year.

We're supposed to see the sun today. But no sign of it yet.

[heleninwales]

Having said that we have no bluebells yet, we did see one this morning. Just the one so far. No sign of the wild garlic yet though.

[bleodswean]

It's lovely to slow down and spend time with the smaller spring forest flowers.

[puddleshark]

Yes. That moment of transition between bare winter woods and green summer woods, when everything is flowering... It's glorious.

[asakiyume]

Definitely green-mist-of-leaves season!

And you've got some cowslips. My mother-in-law always laments the decline in cowslips and is always happy when she sees some.

[puddleshark]

Green-mist-of-leaves season

I love that! That describes it perfectly.

Cowslips are so rare now - I hardly ever see them except on the nature reserves - so it was lovely to come across some flowering in the fields.

[sartorias]

The green is absolutely swoony.

[puddleshark]

The leaves are only just starting to unfold. In a few more weeks the woods will be impossibly, intoxicatingly green...

[kaishin108]

What a beautiful walk and how fun to see the Blue bells starting to bloom. That wood spurge, I saw something about some local wood spurge here and I guess it is toxic to dogs and can give people a skin rash. But it sure is pretty!

I hope you don't get more rain that you mentioned.

[puddleshark]

Yes, I've always avoided growing Euphorbia in my garden, though I love the geometrical green flowers.

The wind has been wild here all day, but, fingers crossed, the forecast isn't looking too bad for the next few days.