River path

[puddleshark]

An early morning walk by the River Piddle.



The rest of the August landscape may be dust, parched yellow grass and ragwort, but the river path is lined with stands of flowers: Hemp Agrimony, Purple Loosestrife, Meadowsweet, Great Willowherb and Rosebay.


Rosebay Willowherb (Chamerion angustifolium). Angustifolium = narrow-leaved.



Great Willowherb (Epilobium hirsutum).


Hemp Agrimony (Eupatorium cannabinum). "The 'hemp' part of its name comes from the similarity between its leaves and that of the cannabis plant. The two species are entirely unrelated, however, and do not share any other properties!" https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/hemp-agrimony


Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria).


Just a short walk today. Poor Max has flat feet - a genetic problem inherited from the Cocker Spaniel side of his breeding - and the hard ground is making him very lame.




Willow Warbler. (Well, it might be a Chiffchaff - I can't tell them apart. But it's a warbler, and it's in the willows...)


A tiny, distant, blurry Sedge Warbler. Very distinctive broad white stripe above the eye.